New York, New Love
by amyy94
Summary: A late night trip to the store causes Beca to meet a very chatty redhead... (Formerly known as "Late Night Shopping")
1. Chapter 1

Late Night Shopping

Beca doesn't make a habit of leaving her apartment after midnight, but this was an emergency.

After a very late finish at her internship at nine o'clock that evening she intended on going home, grabbing something quick to eat and begin working on a new mix. She had had this beat stuck in her head all day and by eight-forty five it was becoming impossible to ignore. Once entering her apartment, she threw her bag by the door, kicked off her shoes, and sunk into her sofa with a very loud sigh. Today had been a long day and finally being home felt heaps better than she imagined it would three quarters of the way into her shift. Turns out 'making coffee and grabbing burritos' all day is a much more tiring job than she'd first thought.

A failed attempt at making an omelette and a fight with the smoke detector later, Beca decided ordering a pizza would be better for both her and her kitchen. Once the food arrived, she finally got to work on her laptop. It was strange how the simplest motion of just putting her headphones on could calm Beca immediately. Music could effortlessly change how she was feeling three minutes ago, and that's one of the many reasons why she loved it so much. Suddenly all the stress of her day peeled away from her and she was just lost in the music. All sense of time disappeared, and before she knew it two hours had already flown by and Beca hadn't even got the chord progressions down yet. She was completely absorbed in her work, right up until her _trusty_ headphones tripped out, making a very loud and high pitched screech before falling silent. _Shit._

This is what brings Beca tightly gripping a brand new (did she mention expensive?) pair of headphones at the back of a strangely long queue, donning her pyjama shorts under a pair of sweat pants and a very thick winter coat over a tank top. Beca had been living in New York for longer than six months now, but it still baffled her how true that "the city never sleeps" statement was; even at seventeen minutes passed midnight on this almost freezing Wednesday morning. _Why the hell are people even out and about at this time?_ She thought to herself as the queue made very little progress of shortening.

Bouncing on the balls of her feet she scanned the amount of people in line and rolled her eyes. Eagerly tapping her fingers on the box, she cast her eyes around the store. She was positioned near the mobile phone accessories aisle and she began mindlessly looking at the endless array of brightly coloured phone cases on display. Standing on her tip toes and taking one more look at the queue in front of her she thought of abandoning the headphones and just returning home; that was until she felt a tap on her shoulder.

Before Beca even had the chance to turn around she heard a voice directly behind her "Which colour do you think suits this best?" There definitely wasn't anybody stood there less than fifteen seconds ago, because as soon as Beca gets a glance of the woman before her, she's certain she would have noticed. _Wow_. That is the only coherent thought she can scramble together right now.

The woman wasn't much taller than Beca, with long red hair that was tied up in a messy bun. She stood there waving a phone in one hand and two phone cases in the other, giving Beca a warm smile that seemed to take over her entire face. Her lips were moving now, but Beca was too lost in the oceanic blue of her eyes that she wasn't hearing anything she was saying. _Get your shit together, Mitchell._ "...I feel like this orange is too in your face, but I fear the blue is too bland, you know?" Beca does in fact **not** know, and if it was any other stranger in this store asking her the same ridiculous question she would probably tell them to get lost, but for some reason, she can't bring herself to dampen this girl's passion regarding iPhone cases right now. "Um, get the blue one, it matches your eyes" _Wait, what, did that seriously just fall out of her mouth?!_ "I mean – you – it's, like four dollars cheaper, so..." she manages to stammer out. After making instant eye contact with the ground, all her hope willing it to swallow her up, she finally gives in, looking back up at the now entertained red head.

"Good save" she mutters with grin, stepping forward and offering her hand out "I'm Chloe" Taking the offered hand in hers and giving it a slow shake "Um, Beca..." Chloe doesn't retract her hand immediately, and Beca swears it lingers just a little longer than normal "...and I swear I'm less awkward in the day time" she smiles whilst finally pulling her hand away. The red head muffles a small laugh and quarks her eyebrow in response, "So you don't usually give out compliments as easy as that then?" Beca can feel her face getting hot; as the information printed on the headphone box in her hands starts to look extremely interesting.

"Who's to say that was a proper compliment?"

She has no idea where that came from, but mentally high-fives herself for gaining her composure so quickly and she can't help the smirk that takes over her face. "Do you usually walk around stores late at night, complementing woman?" questions Chloe with a serious expression on her face. Beca's smirk is long gone now, but she lets out a nervous giggle before breathing "Only the pretty ones". Chloe seems to hum in approvable, smiling brightly at the DJ and holding her gaze. Beca can feel her face returning to its previous flustered state, and points at the blue phone case in aid as a distraction, causing the red head to look down at it.

"Have I sold you on it then?" she adds. Chloe looks back up at her, nodding. "It was the first one I picked up, and first choice tends to always be the right choice, right?" she replies bumping Beca's arm with her shoulder as she begins to move into the queue, adding a suggestive wink for good measure. Beca lets out a small chuckle and returns her smile, as the now considerably short line moves at a quicker pace than earlier and before she knows it she's parting ways from Chloe with the intended purchased headphone and a unexpected, but not unwelcomed grin on her face from their interaction.

Chloe watches Beca as she makes her way to the automatic doors, taking a left onto the street. Quickly thanking the cashier and sticking the blue phone case in her bag, she rushes over to the exit and into the harsh New York winter whilst spotting the woman in question a couple of yards away. "Hey. Beca!" she yells, quickening her pace to catch up with her. Chloe falls in step with her, as Beca turns. Reading the shorter woman's expression, she sees no reason stopping her from asking her desired question. Confidence was never something that she struggled with. In fact, she had been told on numerous occasions that she could come across too forward; not that that bothered her in the slightest; she knew it was part of what she liked to call the "Chloe charm".

"How about you give me your number, so we can meet up in the daylight, and who knows, maybe I'll convince you to give me that 'proper compliment?'" Beca stopped walking; staring at her, mouth agape. She had never quite met someone like this before. Chloe just seemed to interject herself into their conversations without so much as a hello or any form of pleasantries so far, and Beca wasn't sure how she felt about it yet. However, she was definitely sure of one thing; she needed to see Chloe again. "Yeah, that sounds nice." She hummed, watching as the woman began fishing her phone from her bag, "Alright. It's a date" she said as she passed the device to Beca's hand, already open in the 'add new contact' application. Her eyes widened, as she locked them with Chloe's.

 _Wait, a date?!_

Beca wasn't sure what she was getting herself into, but she couldn't wait to find out...


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

It had been two days since Beca had exchanged numbers with Chloe. Two long days full of over analysing, self-doubt and radio silence and it's safe to say it's killing her. If Beca was being completely honest with herself, the thought of texting or calling first didn't even enter her head, but it's safe to say that very thought has now entered her head more than four thousand times - Ok, that may be an over exaggerated figure, but she's certain she has thought of nothing else longer than five minutes other than her current predicament - and all the thoughts that follow with it.

Since making it home from the store at almost one o'clock, she was too tired and distracted to continue her mix, so just headed straight to bed. Beca fell asleep relatively quickly, and thoughts of Chloe and their prior interaction were the last thing she remembered before drifting off into a comfortable slumber.

The next couple of days were spent at work, far from focussed and constantly checking her phone. When she heard the familiar chime, all her actions were halted to a complete stop. The amount of times she was fooled by her imagination or someone else's text tone was becoming embarrassing desperate. Ever imagined how many cups of coffee one could juggle whilst fishing a phone from a pocket? None! The answer is always none, and the evidence of how true that statement was remained on Beca's black skinny jeans in the form of coffee stains for the rest of the day.

Nights were spent going over and over her meeting with Chloe, looking for any clues or hints as to why she hadn't called. It was ridiculous and borderline obsessive, but she put that thought to the back of her mind and listed more reasons as to why she had heard nothing from the redhead and why she shouldn't make the first move. These reasons ranged from both ends of the spectrum; her spectrum numbered from realistic to damn right insane.

Finally she caved. The stress and anxiety of it all was taking its toil and she had to get these feelings off her chest.

* * *

Beca had moved in with Stacie on her third week of living in the city. After gaining her internship in New York, she'd packed up and left Georgia without a second thought. Now looking back on it, her second thought probably should have been how long this internship would develop into the promised fully paid position, but she was getting by so far, and a promotion was looking positive. LA was always the dream, although she convinced herself New York was far from a compromise, but a step in the right direction. This logic was surprising sensible and optimistic; which were not the most common used words to describe Beca. But hey, new city, new outlook!

After three weeks of living in actual squalor in a falsely advertised 'clean and spacious' apartment she found a roommate add advertised in the paper and jumped at the chance. The location was perfect and upon seeing the apartment she could actually picture herself living there. Due to preventing herself from making any hasty decisions, she made a pros and cons list, and Beca feels no shame in admitting the fact that she put her potential roommate, Stacie, in big capital letters at the top of the cons column.

Eventually after biting the bullet and moving in, Stacie began to grow on her and the two of them became best friends very quickly. Both girls can admit it's not always sunshine and rainbows, Beca can be messy and that is one of the things Stacie stated as her pet hate in the ad. However, Stacie makes a habit of bringing home many _loud_ sexual conquests at ungodly hours and "that wasn't stated on the ad either, Stace, so..." but after almost six months they are used to living together.

In hind sight, Stacie was the complete opposite of Beca; tall, extrovert, sexual, straight; these were to name a few, but she wouldn't want to be best friends with anyone else. So it was only right that Beca would head straight to Stacie in need of advice for this sort of thing. Not only did she have an extensive amount of _experience_ in the matter, "but it's what friends are for, right?" Stacie has used that excuse on her more times than she'd like to admit, so it was about time she could get her own back.

After filling her best friend in on current events Stacie sat cross legged on the other end of the sofa beaming back at her. "Did you literally hear anything I just said?!" she huffed whilst picking her half empty beer bottle off the coffee table and bringing it to her lips. Stacie uncrossed her legs, readjusting her position, and turned to face Beca square on whilst nudging her with her foot, "I just can't believe you met someone. Never mind got her number! Like, I'm contemplating the fact that this is one of your awful jokes and I'm waiting for the punch line" Beca glared at her whilst placing the now almost empty bottle back on its coaster. "Well that's rude" she barked. Stacie laughed "Look, I just don't see what the problem is here. You like her, right?" Beca felt a blush run to her cheeks, (probably because of the beer. Yeah, it was the beer) she paused for a second and began nodding shyly "She's –I mean – Her – I ... " For fear of ruining her street cred and avoiding the verbal vomit this girl seemed to stir within her. She finished with a simple "Yes".

With that, Stacie leaned forward, retrieving Beca's phone from the arm rest and waving it in the air "Well that settles it then, doesn't it?" she smirked. Before Stacie could bring the phone to life, the short woman was on her knees lurching forward, fighting for the phone "Dude, no! Give it back" and with that the device was out of her reach, as Stacie stood on the couch cushion pushing the top of her head, so Beca couldn't get to her feet. As quickly as the phone was taken it was dropped back in its rightful owner's lap, whilst Stacie skipped into the kitchen, opening the refrigerator. Beca groaned loudly "Fuck", unlocking the screen and preparing herself for the horror of her best friend's actions.

 **[Beca 19:48] Hi, gorgeous. I'm still waiting on that date. Where am I taking you? Xoxo**

Stacie returned back to the sofa with two bottles of beer in her hands and a shit eating grin painted on her face. Beca looked at her through her fingers that were now holding her face in horror. "That's it, I'm going to have to move back to Georgia and restart my life" she whined. Stacie chucked, shaking her head. She gestured the offered beer to Beca, who snatched it from her hand and began to drain the bottle of its liquid immediately. "Not only did you greet her with 'gorgeous' but you also ended it with hugs and kisses. If she has any sense at all, she'll delete my number"

And with that the phone chimed...

Both girls scrambled at it, but Beca was much quicker this time. Not only had she learnt her lesson, she was also eagerly curious to read Chloe's reply.

 **[Chloe 19:52] Beca! I was beginning to think you'd forgotten about me ;). I'm free when you are and I like surprises. xoxox**

Stacie and Beca both read the message and looked up at each other smiling. Stacie squatted the now grinning DJ on the arm, "She was waiting on you all along, you dweeb!"

* * *

 **A/N – So this is my first fic, and I honestly wasn't expecting many views, so I'd thought I'd strike whilst the iron was still hot and post chapter two. Thanks for the follows and all that shizz, much appreciated. I'm not really sure where the story is going, I was just going to post it as a one-shot, but here we are. Also the name of this story is pretty awful, I'm trying to think of alternatives, but I'm struggling at the moment, so bear with me**

 **I should probably state all the obvious stuff; I do not own any of the characters, blah, blah, and any mistakes are that of my own. Anyway hope you all like this chapter, let me know if you want me to continue and I'm open to any constructive-criticisms. Follow and review (That seems to be what everyone else writes in their author notes, right)**

 **Thanks.**


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

 _Chloe had seriously underestimated how stressful moving to a new city would be. It consisted of too much organising, heavy lifting, and paperwork, but finally after about a week of non-stop chaos, everything was slowly falling into place and they were settled in their new apartment. It was moments like these; sipping a glass of wine, Netflix on and cuddled into Tom's side; that she knew all the stress was worth it._

 _Shortly after graduating Barden University, she and Tom's relationship had gotten more serious, which was expected seen as they'd been together for almost two years. After much deliberating in their final few months at college, they had decided to move in together._

 _Their relationship was great, for Chloe it was the first time she had dated someone and experienced those butterflies that people talked so fondly about. On their first date he took her to dinner, held doors open for her, pulled her chair out, and kissed her on the cheek goodnight after walking back to her dorm. Tom was a gentleman, with boyish good lucks and a great sense of humour; what could she possibly not like? It's safe to say she fell in love very fast, very quickly._

 _Even six months down the line where she was warned their relationship could falter, she still felt exactly the same. He made her feel special, like all the guys before him hadn't been treating her right. The first time they exchanged their "I love you's" he told her she was his most favourite person in the world, and she believed him, simply because he was telling the truth._

 _So when Tom was offered a coaching position for a baseball team in New York, he asked Chloe to go with him and there was not an ounce of doubt in her mind when she quickly whispered "Yes." within seconds of being asked the question. The truth of the matter was, Tom lived and breathed baseball. His entire college career was filled with hard work and motivation in order to pursue his coaching dream. After a couple of months of continuous applying to get his foot in the door of a minor league team it had finally paid off. Tom's career was just beginning and the first thought upon reading the e-mail containing the job offer was Chloe._

" _Look, I understand that moving to New York isn't the 'moving in together' we had planned; it's a big decision. But just know, one word from you and I'll turn it down" Those words echoed in an empty kitchen of the Bella's house, as she abruptly stopped washing the dish in her hand. Suddenly realisation washed over her; the man whom she was madly in love with just told her he would willingly give up his dream to stay in Atlanta just for her. Looking back on it now, Chloe knew this was the moment she realised Tom was_ _ **the one**_ _and she couldn't care less where she was in the world, just as long as they were together._

 _Chloe was pulled from her thoughts by the familiar sound of the ending credits of House of Cards. The show was seriously not her thing, but Tom was so into it, that she didn't have the heart to come clean. He picked up the remote for the television swiftly and turned to kiss her forehead "Ready for bed, babe? It's getting late." She sat up, placing the wine glass on the coffee table, pulling her feet from under her and planting them on the carpet "Yeah, we both have early starts tomorrow. Did the landlord call you back about the dripping tap?" she smiled. Shouting from the kitchen "He said they'd be a plumber here sometime in the next few days to have a look at it" he called out._

 _From the moment they had moved in, the tap had been constantly dripping in the bathroom and it was driving her insane. Chloe likes silence when she sleeps and the smallest sound such as a ticking clock or even a_ _ **dripping tap**_ _could not be ignored. The bathroom was next door to their bedroom, and even with both doors shut and Tom's light snoring (which she strangely likes to hear at night) she can still here the faint_ _ **drip drip**_ _of the water hitting the basin. "Thank God! It's been driving me wild since we moved in" she breathed. Tom mischievously smiled, grabbing her by the waist and pulling her close, "I can think of a few things I could do to distract you tonight, if you like?" he said, pressing a quick kiss to her lips. Chloe laughed, burying her head in his shoulder and returning his gaze "Oh yeah, like what?" she winked, before scampering down the hall to the bedroom. "I can demonstrate some of those things to you, in the bedroom!" he shouted following her down the hall._

 **[Beca] 20:00: How does tomorrow night at 8pm sound? xoxo**

 **[Chloe] 20:02: 8pm sounds great. Text me the address and I'll see you there. Xoxoxox**

Beca looked at herself in the mirror and rushed to her wardrobe again to change for the nth time. She had another forty minutes before she had to set off to meet Chloe, but deciding on an outfit was becoming a problem. Stacie had gone out for the evening, which wasn't unusual for a Friday night, so they'd picked her outfit out together late last night. After receiving Chloe's message and the few replies that were exchanged back and forth, the two roommates had a few more beers and began bouncing ideas back and forth for her surprise date.

To Stacie's disapproval, Beca had decided on a run-down bar near-by, where they held live music from new and upcoming acts. She knew it wasn't going to sweep the taller woman off her feet, but they sold alcohol and the bands were always decent, if not great. She didn't see the point in planning some big fancy charade of a date night that Beca knew she wouldn't be able to live up to if they were to go out together again. This was safe - maybe too safe - but at least it was honest.

Beca discovered the place after she got lost on the way back from her internship to her old apartment shortly after moving to the city. She had spent most of her life in the suburbs, and getting lost became and still is a common occurrence. The tall building seemed to sink into the street, making it barely noticeable due to its lack of sign and colour, but it was the only door ajar on the street, so she took a deep breath and walked down the dimly lit stair case, intending on asking for directions. What she didn't expect was the general feel-good atmosphere of the place, and the pounding of a bass coming from the small stage. The place was bustling and the bar was heaving. So much so, that once she finally got the bartender's attention, he just handed her a drink. When Beca made it home five hours later and slightly buzzed, she felt like she'd just discovered Narnia and it quickly became her favourite bar in the entire city. Heck, she'd go as far to say ever, but she never really goes out much, so perhaps she's not the best judge of those things...

Another twenty minutes ticked by and the pressure was mounting, so suppressing the urge to call her best friend for advice, Beca changed and put the (first) outfit Stacie helped her pick out back on. She kept it casual with black skinny jeans, a white blouse, and a leather jacket. As she made it to the door, she picked up her keys, checked she had everything she needed and headed out.

By the time Beca had arrived across the street from the bar, she spotted Chloe immediately, and not just because she was the only person stood outside; Beca is sure she would have noticed the redhead in a crowd of more than a hundred people, because _wow._ There was that thought again, it seemed it was becoming a habit around Chloe. She was wearing a turquoise dress, hair perfectly curled, and if anyone was to ask, Beca would say her smile made the outfit.

Even stood alone in the cold on an almost disserted street, the woman's facial expression was content. Unfortunately, for Beca, she was unkindly blessed with a serious case of resting bitch face, but Chloe? She just seemed to smile regardless, and Beca thought that was beautiful. Finally they caught each other's line of sight, and although it should have been deemed impossible, the red head's smile grew even bigger, as she ran over to Beca, engulfing her in a tight hug. This caught the shorter woman off-guard, as her senses were overwhelmed by a wave of perfume and a mild scent of vanilla. After a few seconds delay, she awkwardly put her arms around Chloe's waist

"I was starting think you were a no-show" she beamed as she pulled back from the embrace. "Dude, I said eight; its four minutes past" she laughed. "Come on, let's go in, it's freezing out here" she hiked her thumb over her shoulder towards the door, putting her hand in Chloe's and leading her down the steps. It wasn't until let go to pull out a bar stool that Beca realised she'd been holding her hand. This kind of behaviour was completely out of character for her, but it felt natural; the fact that it was done self-consciously supported that. She quickly shook off the thought, put on her game face and slammed her hand down on the bar "So, what do beautiful women like yourself drink?" she smirked. The redhead didn't miss a beat, "Wow, a compliment already? You don't break promises, do you?" she laughed. "I don't know. How about you surprise me?" she shrugged playfully.

"I'm sensing you like to be surprised a lot... So on a scale of one to ten; one being unpleasant and ten being gobsmacked; how is my choice of venue? "she grinned looking around the bar and then back at Chloe. "A ten. Nobody has ever brought me to a dive bar on a first date before..." All the bravado of the DJ's confidence drained from her face, as she looked down at the spilt alcohol on the sticky bar surface attempting to stammer out a sentence. Not going unnoticed, Chloe quickly reached out to cover her hand with her own "Hey, that's not what I meant, I was just playing around. I like it, it's different" she waved her hand in the air "It has character. Trust me, I'm a good kind of surprised" Beca looked down at the hand now drawing a comforting circle pattern on her wrist, and dragged her eyes back up to those deep baby blues "Yeah?" she questioned with a small smile. Chloe nodded reassuringly and began to order them some drinks, without removing her hand from atop of Beca's.

Conversation just flowed after that. There was never an awkward silence that usually occurred on first dates. Chloe had told her she was a TA at one of the schools near-by, and Beca loved how animated she became when talking about the students in her class. After finding out the aspiring music producer worked at a recording studio, they soon got talking about music. Chloe had genuine passion in her voice when she spoke about her music taste, and Beca loved how argumentative she was when she mocked her for being part of an a cappella group in college; it was really hot actually ... _Did she really just think the word hot?!_ They burned through a lot of topics, and honestly the brunette could listen to Chloe all night long.

An hour had passed since they arrived, and so far Beca was having a great time. The band that was playing tonight was half way through their set and sounded electric. The guitar riffs were fresh and Beca loved the electronic sound they had created to set themselves apart from other indie bands. Judging by the fact that Chloe dragged them up to dance three songs ago, she seemed to like them too. Beca does **not** dance, but the pout Chloe sported after her initial flat out refusal and a shot of tequila later; here they were, swaying together at the front of the stage. At first it was a little awkward, Beca wasn't sure how close she was suppose to stand, or what she should do with her hands, but they were quickly guided to the redhead's waist, as arms comfortably rested on her shoulders. Weirdly, things got less and less awkward after that.

Four beers later, the pair found themselves sitting lazily on a sofa that was placed in a secluded corner. The dark purple fabric was suspiciously sticky, and Beca's sure if she wasn't tipsy, she would have avoided sitting on it at all costs, but Chloe sat down first and it was becoming clear that wherever she went, the DJ was hot on her heels. Perhaps because their hand holding had gotten a lot more frequent during the night, but Beca's sure even if it hadn't, she'd follow anyway.

All the members of the band had left the stage now, and just the lead singer remained with his guitar. He shuffled in his seat slightly and began strumming a slow melody, singing softly into the microphone. Beca couldn't help but notice Chloe lean forward off the couch, her eyes glistening in the reflection of the stage lights. Her red hair fell slightly on the left side of her face, partially covering one of her eyes. Beca noticed at this angle she could see new freckles she hadn't spotted before, or the way Chloe's lips naturally upturned into a smile. She looked completely lost in the song, and ironically Beca was just lost in the other woman's beauty. _You really need to stop thinking shit like this, Beca_ she thought to herself.

The song came to an end, and Beca forced her eyes away in danger of being caught staring, and looked back towards the stage. Chloe softly placed her hand on the smaller girl's thigh "So, how long have you lived in New York?" she asked, wetting her lips; Beca resisted the urge to look down at them, as she smiled back "About six months, I moved out here for my job at the recording studio. Honestly, I couldn't wait to get out of Georgia" Chloe squeezed her leg under her grip "No way, I went to school in Georgia!" she squealed, "Barden University, you know it?" The younger woman stifled a laugh "Yeah, very well. My Dad is a professor there"

"As if!" she was literally yelling now. "What a small world. What did he teach? Now that you mention it, the name Mitchell does vaguely ring a bell"

"English Lit. If you ever saw him around campus, you've probably seen him more than I have in the past year..." she rolled her eyes. Chloe leaned towards her with a look of concern "I guess you don't get on?" she asked shyly.

It's not that she and her Father didn't get on - it would actually require them to be in the same room for longer than five minutes to disagree on something for that to be true – but after Beca had declined his very unconvincing plea for her to attend Barden before accepting the job offer here, most communication between them had stopped. She took a deep breath and puffed the air from her cheeks in response "That is a whole different story for a different date." the brunette smirked as she bumped the other woman's shoulder.

"Well, someone is feeling confident. Who's to say a second date is on the cards?" Chloe asked playfully.

"Why don't you tell me if I've won you over at the end of the night?"

"To be honest, you're already doing a fine job of it so far."

Beca tried and failed to hold back her goofy grin, as she placed out her hand, palm facing up. Chloe looked down at it confused. "Can you hold this for me whilst we go for a walk?" she grinned, wiggling her fingers. The redhead let out a nervous giggle, before tugging at the offered hand, and leading them towards the exit.

"Where are we going now?"

Beca just shrugged, "It's a surprise" she said innocently.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N No.1: So this is pretty much just a filler chapter, where nothing really interesting happens. I have a rough outline of the next chapter, but I'm struggling with it - No matter how much I write, I'm just not happy with it. So there may be a little bit of a delay on the next update, but just know I am trying... And I hope you guys can forgive me.**

 **Also 58 followers and 12 favs?!**

 **Whatt, that's crazy! Thank you so much, all of it has been very much appreciated. All the views and the reviews haven't gone unnoticed, so thanks again for taking the time. It's really giving me the motivation needed to power through this next chapter.**

 **A/N No.2: I changed the name of the story, because the old name was that bad it was starting to bother me. Also, just in case anyone was confused, Chloe's POV in the italics is in the past, before she met Beca.**

 **Another thing that I get really OCD about, is the lack of page breaks in previous chapters. No matter what I do on the word document, once I upload it to the site, they get removed so when you see "xxxxxx" in the future, it's just to break the paragraphs/story up. I swear I'm not sending you random kisses half way through the chapters...**

 **A/N No.3: I'm going to stop waffling on right now and let you read what you actually came here for. So... thanks again. And I promise the next chapter will be the second half of the date. (You know, in case anyway was wondering...)**

 **Xxxxxxxxx**

Chapter Four

 _Chloe awoke to the unwelcomed ringtone of her phone from the night stand. She groaned loudly and turned over, sinking her head further into her pillow. "Tom, your phone" she mumbled under her breath as she tightly closed her eyes. Eventually the persistent ringing stopped and she let out a content sigh, readjusting herself into a more comfortable position and stretching her arm to Tom's side of the bed. It was cold. She opened her eyes to see the left side was empty, and Tom was in fact gone._

" _Shit"_

 _Her eyes shot open and her body jolted upwards_

" _Shit!"_

 _She threw the duvet off her body and headed straight to the closet._

" _Shit! Shit! Shit"_

 _After throwing on some clothes, picking up her shoes, and unlocking her phone she headed for the door, firing off a quick text._

 **Chloe [9:28am]: Woke up late. Tom didn't wake me. I'll be there in ten; you know what to do ;)**

 _She fumbled in the elevator; putting on her shoes and readjusting her hair; watching the numbers count down to the ground floor impatiently. It took her less than ten minutes to get to the coffee shop down the street and she literally fell through the door as she pushed it open with a little too much force. This of course, went unnoticed, as a small crowd had formed in the centre of the shop. Chloe carefully made her way behind the counter undetected and reached for one of the aprons hung up on the hook._

" _I feel tingly. Why can I taste copper on my tongue? Do you think if I stretched a little farther I could touch the sky?" A hand became visible above the heads of a few customers. "That's some shi..."_

 _Chloe stifled a laugh as she heard a thud and the scrapping of a chair, which was quickly followed by loud gasps. After gaining her composure, she took a deep breath and reached for the paper bag that had been left on the shelf beneath the cash register. She rushed over to the cluster of people and began pushing her way past "Amy! Don't worry, I'm here" she shouted, throwing the paper bag to the ground. The sight she was met with was enough to throw her off her game, but she managed to stay in character. Fat Amy was sprawled on the floor, vigorously rolling back and forth, whimpering into her apron that had somehow found its way around her head._

 _Dramatically, Chloe fell to her knees beside the Australian woman pulling the apron from her face and angling her onto her side. She turned to the crowd motioning for them to step back, then brought her attention back to Fat Amy who was now grinning like a six year old. Chloe gave her a stern look before raising her voice "It's OK, Amy, it's just a seizure. You're going to be fine, just breathe and focus on my voice" Chloe then began rubbing circles on her back causing Fat Amy to make more wailing noises. After a minute or so, the blonde woman settled down and slowly sat up, grabbing Chloe's forearm. "Thanks, ginge. I think I'm back to normal now" she said with a quick wink._

" _Alright, guys, that's enough. Give the lady some space; she's diabetic, noting to see here!"_

 _Suddenly a taller lady rustled through the mob. She was wearing a green button up shirt, and covering a phone from the current commotion with her left hand. Her manager's name tag rattled as she brushed past the last few people, "What the hell is going on here?" she breathed through gritted teeth, attempting to keep it professional._

" _Oh! Suzy!" Chloe called out, her tone laced with 'surprise' and probably too much theatrics._

 _Amy got to her feet and pulled herself up with one of the chairs, leaning against one of the vacant tables "Seizure" she panted, like it was the most obvious thing in the world. She formed a fist and pressed it against her chest, "Chloe pretty much saved the day" she pointed to the red head as she picked the brown bag up off the ground. "Yeah, seems I nip out for some hand sanitizer for the customer rest room and Amy here has a seizure. Can you believe that?!" Chloe exclaimed with a shy smile and the shake of her head. The taller woman narrowed her eyes and looked around at the now dispersing crowd, "Just... Just get back to work, ok?" she stammered. Chloe and Fat Amy exchanged a look and answered "Yes, boss" in unison, as Suzy disappeared into her office and slammed the door behind her._

 _Making their way back to the counter, both women burst into fits of laughter, as Fat Amy readjusted her apron "I can't believe she bought it" she said between giggles._

 _Chloe laughed even harder and patted her on the shoulder "Amy, I'm certain if it wasn't for her conference call she would have sacked us both" Fat Amy straightened her shoulders sharply and raised her eyebrows "Well, it's a good job I rewrote my medical form after the tenth time I tried to wake you this morning, stating diabetes as one of my illnesses then, isn't it? Chloe narrowed her eyes "You didn't?"_

 _Fat Amy began wiping a cloth over the counter surface "Yep, I did" she replied, popping the p. "And as it happens that 'hypoglycaemic seizure' I just experienced was triggered by my dangerously low blood sugar level, so..." she shrugged smugly._

" _Well, I have to say you've clearly done your research, and although I am strangely proud, you did forget one small detail"_

" _Oh, and what's that?"_

" _You" Chloe said, waving her finger "would never have "dangerously" low blood sugar!"_

 _Fat Amy rolled her eyes and threw the now dirty cloth at the laughing red head, "OK, but you have to admit that was the only flaw in my plan!" she admitted in defeat. Chloe caught the cloth before it collided with her face and let out a chuckle. "On a more serious note though, you're going to have to start setting alarms" Amy scolded._

" _Yeah, yeah, I know. I'm not sure how many fake seizures you could muster in the next week" she quipped. Fat Amy brought her hand to her chest, mouth agape "I cannot believe you would ever doubt me. After that performance I think we have established I'm a pro. Once, I single-handed convinced the whole of Australia that I had epilepsy so I didn't have to take driver's ed" She picked up one of the Styrofoam cups up, using it as a microphone and began shouting in it "I would like to thank the academy for the nomination..." Chloe leaned forward pulling the cup away from her "Customers. We have customers" she whispered in between giggles._

 _Chloe had been working at Cup of Joe for just a few days shy of a month now, and yes, she was counting. Turns out getting a teaching job in New York is a lot more difficult than she had first thought. So much so, that when she applied for this position half heartedly and got the job, she was grateful; there is only so much rejection one person can take and it was starting to wear her down. Even Chloe 'bubbly, optimistic, see's the good in everything' Beale._

 _But that's not say that making coffee for a living is beneath her, because it isn't; it's just very frustrating to have the qualifications for your dream job and letting them go to waste on a coffee machine and cash register. However, Fat Amy made work more than bearable; her quirky personality and laugh out loud humour brightened every single one of Chloe's shifts, and she often wonders if she'd mind working there more if the Australian wasn't her co-worker._

 _Although Chloe had moved her life eight-hundred-and-seventy miles from Barden, she still felt like she was in college; working five days a week and partying at the weekend with Fat Amy had become a regular pattern, but that's not so say she wasn't having fun, because she was. Hell, she was having way more fun than she did at Barden; but she couldn't quite shake the feeling that her life was currently stuck in motion. Tom on the other hand had been promoted to pitching coach and his team was currently top of the league. Chloe hates admitting that the line between jealousy and happiness was beginning to blur when it came to Tom and his success, and jealously was not a feeling she was very familiar with. But she's put those thoughts on the back burner, because eventually she'll hear back from one of the eight schools that are still pending her application and everything will be fine again..._

" _So, I take it Tom didn't come home again last night?" Fat Amy asked as Chloe wiped down one of the tables. The store was empty of customers now, as every week day at around the same time, business died down for the morning until they were greeted with the steady lunch time rush._

 _Chloe pushed one of the chairs back under a table and let out a quiet grown, "Can we not talk about this again?" she whined. Fat Amy pulled herself up onto the counter and began swinging her legs against the cupboards below "Hey, you confided in me about this first, so right now, I'm just being the good friend" she replied, shrugging her shoulders._

 _Chloe lifted her head to the ceiling and threw herself down on one of the sofas near the counter. "I don't know. He went out with the guys from work after dinner and told me not to wait up. The late shifts here have been kicking my ass lately, so I had an early night" she deadpanned, clutching at the dirty cloth in her hand._

" _So, you didn't hear him come in?" she questioned, making her new way towards the sofa. Feeling deflated, Chloe simply shook her head as Amy landed with a thump beside her. "But you know how I get after a glass of wine on a school night; it knocks me out cold and I'm dead to the world" she offered with a small smile. Fat Amy chuckled "That I can vouch for! I'll never forget the time you passed out on my couch when we were suppose to go to that slam poetry night a couple f weeks ago"_

" _Yeah, no, I can tell you now that wasn't the wine. I just really didn't want to go, but I wasn't sure how to tell you" Chloe laughed, playfully nudging the other woman. "Slam poetry club parties are, like, THE best parties. All the ridiculously handsome men get emotionally vulnerable, and only Fat Amy can make them feel better... If you know what I mean" she winked. Chloe grinned, rolling her eyes._

" _But returning back to the Tom topic; you need to talk to him, Red"_

" _And say what? 'Hey Tom, I would really appreciate it if you stopped enjoying your new life in the big city, stopped banging on about your career and just had a beer with your coffee barista girlfriend, instead of your work mates all the time' because I'm sure that would really improve our relationship" Chloe snickered._

" _Yes!" Amy shouted, throwing her hands in the air "I mean, maybe not the first bit, but that's exactly what you should be saying" Chloe took a deep breath and puffed the air out of her cheeks. The younger woman placed a comforting hand on her knee "Look, from what you've told me about him, he seems a nice guy that really loves you. But he might not be aware of what he's doing until you talk to him about it. You're both adjusting to life in the city and if you're not happy, Chloe, he deserves to know."_

 _Although Amy had been around to Tom and Chloe's apartment several times – most of the time it was after a long night of partying and the checkpoint to order pizza - in the past month, she was still to meet her co-worker's other half. She had heard so much about him and the vast majority was always good, however, lately, Chloe didn't seem to have anything to say regarding their relationship at all anymore. As far as Fat Amy could tell "beer with the boys" and coaching baseball were his main priorities right now, and unfortunately Chloe didn't seem to be on that list._

 _So, she let her words linger for a few seconds, before Chloe mumbled "Yeah, I guess you're right" and pulled her in for a quick hug. "That was surprisingly useful advice, Amy"_

" _Crushed it!"_


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five

"So, although I admire the mystery, where are we actually going?"

Now Beca wasn't lying when she said she planned nothing spectacular for her date with Chloe. Her entire plan for the evening was drinking at the bar, listening to live music and then parting ways and both returning to their respectable homes. But, on a whim, she'd asked Chloe to go for a walk. If she was being perfectly honest, the urge to kiss the taller woman back on that awful purple sofa was increasing by the second, so suggesting a walk was her idea of a distraction. Then she'd stupidly upped the ante by calling it a "surprise". Which wasn't entirely untrue, the destination would be a surprise for both of them, because _she had_ _no fucking idea where they were going!_

But the date had gone so well so far and Chloe's beauty distracted her. Beca 'anti-social-doesn't-go-out-much' Mitchell was actually out (like, outdoors, on a weekend) with the hottest girl she'd ever seen; there's that stupid word again; and she made no effort to woo her. Stacie was right, what the hell was she thinking? Of course she should have planned something romantic and extravagant; a drink at a bar wasn't going to cut it. The urge to reach for her cell phone and text Stacie was building with each step, but she took a deep breath and began racking her brain for an idea.

It wasn't until Chloe was looking at her expectantly that Beca even remembered she's been asked a question, q _uick, dude, think. THINK!_

"Oh, you know, just taking you somewhere quiet and secluded, where I can...?" she stopped walking, turned to Chloe and pulled her closer, so their bodies were almost flush against each other. Chloe inched a little closer to her face, blue eyes holding her gaze and slowly travelling towards the shorter woman's lips. Beca flashed a grin and let her words hang in the air a second longer.

"...Murder you and dispose of your body without the risk of witnesses" she quickly replied, briskly pulling away and resuming the walk down the side walk in a howl of laughter leaving a gobsmacked redhead in her wake. Chloe remained still for a second, trying to gather her composure as she rolled her eyes, a wide smile etching her face. _Had she seriously just fallen for that?_

Despite the DJ's current situation, she had to admit, she handled her question very well. Deflecting was a regular thing for Beca; it was usually very rash and abrupt. For example, a couple of months ago when Stacie's Mother came to visit, Mrs. Conrad had outright asked if she was sleeping with her daughter at the first opportunity she had in absence of Stacie. After knocking over the centre piece on the table, along with a very unwelcomed coughing fit, Beca had played the "Shoot, is that the time?! I gotta go and do that thing I have to do" and literally ran out of the apartment. It's safe to say, she wasn't very subtle, but judging by Chloe's reaction, she did a very good job at giving off that mysterious vibe she had just previously mentioned. She would go as far to say it was successful flirting - which was another thing Beca wasn't very good at either – but she'll overanalyse that later.

Chloe quickly caught up with her, bumping their shoulders together. She looked the shorter woman up and down as if sizing her up "I don't know. Seen as I have the height advantage, I'm pretty sure I could take you" she playfully shrugged. Beca glared at her, trying to contain the smile that was playing on her lips "Wow, short jokes on a first date? I knew you were too good to be true..."

"I'm going to go ahead and call that another compliment" Chloe grinned. "But seriously, where are we going?"

Beca was just about to confess, the words on the tip of her tongue, until she caught a glimpse of the entrance to Central Park. She pointed a finger at the path behind Chloe "A walk?" she stammered out.

 _A walk in central park on a first date? Yeah, that's not a cliché at all, Mitchell. Not to mention it's the middle of the freaking winter! Oh, and almost eleven. What a terrible idea, if anything, she's probably going to question your joke about the whole murder thi..._

"Yeah, that actually sounds nice"

Chloe's unexpected response pulled her from her thoughts.

"Really, it does?" Beca questioned in surprise.

Instead of getting a reply, there was a tug of her hand and she was being led through the gates.

They had been walking in a comfortable silence for the past five minutes and Beca was absent mindedly rubbing circles on Chloe's thumb, completely unaware of the butterflies fluttering in the redhead's stomach because of it. Despite the time and the cold, Beca thought the park still held all its beauty of a summer afternoon, but that could have something to do with company, she wasn't exactly sure. The path was well lit, so it didn't give off the creepy vibe she had first thought – she was hoping Chloe was thinking the same thing - and then over thinking all the possible thoughts that could be racing through the redhead's mind right now. All her thoughts were stopped, as Chloe hooked her other arm over the one holding Beca's hand and nuzzled her head into her shoulder.

"Can I ask you a question?" Chloe's hot breath tickled her neck as she spoke and Beca could feel the grip tighten a little around her arm, as she readjusted her head further onto her shoulder. The DJ's heart did a little flip-flop and she had a sudden overwhelming need to kiss the top of her forehead. But that was weird even by her standards and she's certain that only happens in the movies, so she pushed it out of her mind.

"Yeah" Beca replied nonchalantly, willing herself to keep it together.

"You had no idea where we going when we left the bar, did you?" The brunette's eyes widened and she's certain her breathing had picked up. Remembering Chloe's position, she took a deep breath and tried to even it back out. She thought about lying, but decided against it, letting out a nervous chuckle. "Honestly, I was just looking for a reason to hold your hand" she quipped. Chloe lifted her head and looked up at Beca raising an eyebrow. The brunette quickly crumbled under her gaze, "No." she shrugged "I just felt like a dive bar wasn't really going to woo you" her voice came out higher at the end making it sound more like a question.

"And you thought a walk outdoors in the middle of winter would sweep me off my feet?" Chloe asked seriously, causing Beca to panic. She could feel the blush creeping up her neck as a hundred different thoughts raced through her head so fast she couldn't differentiate one between the other. This is where it happens. _Well it was bound to happen sooner or later; I'm surprised I made it this far_ she thought. Queue the ever so _famous_ "Beca Mitchell ramble"...

"Yes. No. I don't... I just thought if I kept walking a grand romantic gesture would come to mind. Not that romantic gestures are my thing or anything, or that you'd, like, want one, because I totally get that. Grand romantic gestures? Yeah, no! Nobody wants them" she scoffed. Her hands were flailing, and the words falling out of her mouth without permission as she stood in the middle of the path. "My friend, Stacie, told me I should have planned something special; you know, like a fancy dinner date or take you to a swanky art gallery? But I hate those kinds of things and I didn't want to build you up to just let you down, you know? But she was right. You're amazing and you should have had that kind of date tonight, 'cause I mean look at you" she sighed, waving her hand up and down."Shit, I don't even know why I'm saying all of this! You should really interrupt me right now, or else I will continue to ramble."

Chloe stared back, her face unreadable. Beca could swear she saw a flicker of confusion, or maybe surprise, but the more she searched her features, the bigger the knot swelled in her stomach. After a few seconds, Chloe suddenly burst into a fit of giggles. Although Beca couldn't see her own face, she was pretty sure she was sporting that dear in the headlights look and the more she tried to remain natural, the worse it got.

The redhead sobered and took a step closer to a worried looking Beca and placed her hands on her shoulders. She gave a warm smile to put her at ease, her hands trailing down the DJs arms, interlocking their fingers and pulling them down onto the bench behind them.

Although Beca could feel Chloe's intent gaze burning into the side of her head, she remained with her eyes on the concrete, not daring to make eye contact yet. She tried to focus on anything other than the woman in front of her, but from the gentle warmth of her palms in hers and the fact that she'd just reached out to squeeze the top of her knee, it was proving quite the challenge.

"Beca, relax. It's fine."

Albeit not looking at Chloe when she spoke those words, Beca could tell she said them with a smile. Those four words held nothing but sincerity and truth, giving her the last kick she needed to look up. Chloe was sat angling herself to face the brunette, and the way she had shuffled impossibly closer did not go unnoticed. In fact, now that she was aware of it, Beca noted the way Chloe's dress had slightly rode up her thigh from sitting down, feeling her skin touch her pant leg. Granted her leg wasn't exactly warm, Beca felt as if it was giving off radiant heat, making her skin tingle.

The DJ brought her eyes back up to Chloe's face; because staring at her thigh for longer that was considered necessary was probably creepy as hell; and let out a sigh. "It's totally fine" Chloe repeated giving Beca all the reassure she needed. How could she possibly make Beca feel completely reassured about the whole thing was beyond her - on other dates, when things had taken this route, Beca would make up some last minute excuse to bolt, or waited for the other person to do the same – but there was something about Chloe; that much was clear; but it was something she'd never really felt before outside of a platonic relationship. She imagined even if this entire evening had gone considerably worse, Beca still wouldn't feel that familiar ever so present urge to run.

Chloe squeezed her thigh this time, bringing her from her thoughts.

"I'm sorry. Tonight has been..." Beca trailed off. "I don't do this a lot; First dates I mean; the awkward rambling thing happens a lot..." she let out a nervous chuckle, pulling at a loose thread from her coat sleeve, "I just really wanted to low key impress you, which sounds ridiculous now that I've said it out loud, but a date at a grungy bar and a walk in central park in almost minus temperatures doesn't exactly score high at the probability for a second date, does it?"

She braced herself for the anticipated, but inevitable reply. She's blown it. After all she did just voice her insecurities and ramble for a solid three minutes before hand. _Blew. It._

"You should really let me decide on the probability." Chloe whispered.

 _Whomp, there it is._

Beca quickly cut in, "Look, you really don't need to actually say it. We can just pretend that tonight never happened, and I'll delete your number, never to contact you again". She didn't think she could handle being let down, gently. That was always worse than the time Kate Davenport demanded she watch Beca delete her number in front of a small audience after spilling a glass of wine down her dress in a downtown restaurant - Ok, so she knocked the table after apologising for an accidental insult about her hair (it just came out wrong) and then attempting to fix the situation by fondling her chest with a napkin – that was easier than hearing Chloe be genuinely nice about that dreaded speech.

Chloe gave her a quick glare "Are you going to let me finish?" she said, wagging her finger.

 _Oh Jesus, she's going to kill me with kindness, slowly!_

Beca obeyed.

"I've enjoyed tonight, and I want to do it again" Chloe smiled, lightly biting her bottom lip.

 _What the fuck?_

That is not what she was expecting. Perhaps halfway through this conversation, Beca was attacked with a blunt object and she was now in a deep coma in a hospital bed. Or she'd had one too many whiskey and cokes at the bar and she's actually just passed out on the sofa and this was all a dream.

These were the only logical explanations for this right now.

Beca sat there, staring ahead, completely gobsmacked by the words that had just left Chloe's mouth. A couple of seconds passed by as the silence fell over them; another few more seconds...

"Unless..." Chloe trailed off, edging further to the other side of the bench slightly. She looked away and placed both hands in her lap uncertainty taking over her face. Beca snapped her head back around to face the woman, sensing the hurt in her voice. Her flat tone alone instantly pulled at Beca's heart.

 _Pinch me_. "Kiss me"

"What?"

Beca never knew the right thing to say. But sometimes; just sometimes; when she could string a two worded sentence together at just the right time it came out in completely the wrong way!

Now what she was meant to say was "Pinch me" You know, because of the whole 'in a coma or dream thing' but just as she spoke, her eyes flickered down to Chloe's lips (big distraction) and she thought "Pinch me" but actually ... _Fuck it!_

Turning ever so slightly to face the redhead, Beca placed her hand on Chloe's forearm and moved a fraction farther down the bench. Their thighs knocked gently; as Beca began moving her head closer to Chloe's, angling it a little to the left.

"I'm going to kiss you now" her breath ghosted Chloe's lips.

She looked deep into the sparkling blue eyes that stared back at her and searched for any kind of warning signs not to go through with this. As Chloe's eyes glanced down to Beca's lips, she had her confirmation and closed the gap.

Chloe's lips were soft and she could faintly taste one of the fruity cocktails they'd drank earlier on her breath. Beca felt a hand wrap around her neck pulling her closer, as their lips danced together. Everything around Beca seemed to go blank and she felt as if she was lost in white noise; she was no longer thinking, but feeling everything that Chloe was putting into the kiss. It was slow, but chaste and it felt right. After gently pulling away, Chloe gently rested her forehead on Beca's, her eyes still shut.

Beca immediately recognised the small smile on her face. After this evening, the brunette had come to realise the she had a range of smiles that had different meanings, but this one took her a second to figure out. She quickly managed to put her finger on it; Chloe looked happily content. That feeling alone put a wide smile on the DJ's face, just at the exact moment the other woman opened her eyes and mirrored Beca's expression. She would go as far to say that was her favourite smile of the night.

Chloe let go of her neck and pulled a few centimetres away, leaving Beca to instantly feel the cold from the absence of her touch.

"I've enjoyed tonight and I want to do it again, maybe tomorrow?" Beca asked mimicking the redhead's previous words with a smirk. Chloe giggled and beamed back at her "I can do tomorrow. A fancy dinner date or the swanky art gallery?" she quipped.

XXXX

Beca turned the key in the lock and stepped over the thresh hold. Retrieving the key from the lock, she leaned on the door, gently pushing it closed, as a content sigh escaped her lips. It wasn't until she let her face fall that she realised it was aching from all of the evening's smiling. Beca then remembered the person that had placed the glee on her face, and she returned to grinning like an idiot.

She let out a small giggle and headed for the fridge in the kitchen; after this evening, a celebratory beer was in order.

After all she had just been on a date with Chloe Beale and despite a few hiccups here and there, date two was already planned. The night might not have been perfect, but Beca couldn't stop herself from feeling on top of the world.

Once they had left Central Park, Beca had insisted on walking the redhead home. Although she was met with protests to begin with, she had eventually gotten her way. They walked down the street, hand in hand and Beca's grin wider than ever. The walk consisted of more easy conversation and all the usual tension the brunette felt on a walk home from a first date fell away.

In Beca's past experiences the walk home always built up to the awkward goodbye outside an apartment door; followed by a missed opportunity or a kiss Beca would considered below average on her part. The good-bye always felt strained or forced at the end of dates, but once again, tonight with Chloe everything was different.

The kiss back on the bench was incredible. It was unexpected and unplanned, but felt completely genuine and, just, all kinds of right. If Beca was being honest, she insisted on walking Chloe home solely just to kiss her again; but if anyone asked, the city can be dangerous at this hour...

Looking back on it, Chloe seemed to argue the point of being walked home a little too strongly. Excuses such as "It's a long walk" and "I can just catch a cab" floated in the air, until Beca stated she wouldn't take no for an answer. They had established they both lived in opposite directions of the park, so maybe Chloe didn't want to seem like she was troubling her. Either way, Beca decided not to over think it.

When they arrived outside an apartment building, Chloe stopped at the bottom of the few stairs leading to the entrance and turned to face Beca, "Well, this is me" she gestured to the door behind. "I would invite you up for coffee, but..." Beca squeezed her hand softly, "Hey, that's not why I wanted to walk you home" she interjected, the sentence a little too rushed. The last thing she wanted was Chloe to think she walked her home for 'that'.

A smile formed at the corners of the redhead's mouth, as she nodded her head "I know, Becs."

That was all she needed to say to put the shorter girl at ease and bring her back to her previous relaxed state; this being the reason for the out of character confidence that was building in her gut, causing her to follow through on her next action.

"I did, however, want to do this again"

She moved her hands to Chloe's waist and pulled her in closer, attaching their lips together. It's safe to say Beca had completely underestimated how amazing it felt kissing Chloe. The first kiss had been short and hesitant, both of them getting use to one another. But now; Beca had completely lost all sense of time, her brain a scrambled into a pile of mush.

Chloe cupped her hands on either side of Beca's checks, their lips clashing together. Beca's arms tightened around her waist, trying to pull them even closer together. With the tilt of her head, Chloe had deepened the kiss and their tongues brushed together. Chloe slowly moved her hands to snake around the shorter woman's neck and tangled her fingers in her hair, as her soft moan was muffled by Beca's lips.

Chloe was the first to pull away, but kept a firm hold on Beca's neck, that same content smile painted across her face. Beca tried, but failed to hold in a giddy giggle, causing both of them to burst into laughter. The brunette loosened her grip on Chloe's waist and placed a soft kiss to her check "You should probably go on in" she whispered next to her ear. "It's a little chilly" she smirked.

Chloe smiled, nodding, as they both pulled away from the embrace. "Coffee, tomorrow afternoon?" Beca questioned. The redhead stopped mid-step and returned back down to Beca, placing a quick peck on her lips. "See you tomorrow" she beamed before scampering back up the steps, disappearing into the building, and leaving a very love sick Beca Mitchell on the side walk.

Unscrewing the cap of the bottle of beer, Beca grabbed her laptop from the living room and padded down the hallway. The butterflies in her stomach, along with the adrenaline was still pumping through her body, so she decided to spend the next hour or so finishing off a mix. This newfound inspiration to complete a once struggling mix had nothing to do with a beautiful redhead or the kiss they had shared. At least that's what she kept telling herself.

Making a pit stop in her bedroom, she changed into her pyjamas, and pulled her headphones over her ears. She plugged in her iPod, turned it onto shuffle and pushed the play button. Beca made her way to the bathroom; the light was on, however the door was ajar, but thinking nothing of it, she pushed it open. The shock of the sight in front of her was enough to make her jump backwards flinging the door shut, as she was stilled with horror in the hallway.

All she wanted to do was brush her teeth, but she was greeted by a topless Stacie propped up on the basin, her legs wrapped around a very tall and a very shirtless man. Perhaps if she wasn't wearing her headphones, she would have been able to hear the sounds of the heavy make out session occurring in her **shared** bathroom, and saved herself from the scarring image that would be forever imprinted in her brain. Thankfully, due to the dim light of the bathroom and the certain angle they were positioned in, Stacie's modesty had been covered and Beca hadn't stayed there long enough to see them quickly break apart.

She slid the headphones from around her neck and managed to finally find her voice "Urm, sorry! I didn't think you were home" she shouted at the closed door, her voice laced with embarrassment. "I just wanted to brush my teeth. I didn't see anything, though. Mr Shirtless had his arm in the way of your boobs. Not like in the way, as in I wanted to look. It was just, like, there. Fuck, can we just forget..." she trailed off.

"I am not in the mood to hear the typical Beca Mitchell ramble right now, Becs" Stacie hollered from the bathroom "If you know what I mean" she added. Despite the fact the door was closed, Beca could picture Stacie winking suggestively at her fellow bathroom buddy right now. "Gross" she muttered, tugging her headphones from her neck.

She was about to turn and walk away, until the door was abruptly pulled open slightly. Stacie stuck her head through the gap and looked at Beca with a mischievous smirk "How was the date?!" she squealed excitedly searching Beca's face for any indications of the outcome.

Beca merely scoffed and rolled her eyes, "I don't think now is a great time, you clearly have things to do" she mumbled nervously, as she dragged her foot over the hardwood flooring of the hallway.

Stacie couldn't help but notice the wide smile that formed on the petite woman's face and took it as a response to her question. "Well actually I have someone to do" she said, emphasising the 'someone'.

Beca shook her head and tightly closed her eyes, wishing this conversation would end. Picking up on this, Stacie let out a giggle; making Beca feel uncomfortable was one of Stacie's favourite pass times. She found it hilarious how awkward and nervous the Beca 'bad-ass' Mitchell would get at the slightest mention of anything sexual. She quickly gathered her thoughts and put Beca out of her misery. "Judging by the late hour of your return and that ridiculous grin, it went well, so if you don't mind" she exclaimed, hiking her thumb over her shoulder and slammed the door shut.

Beca let out a sigh of relief, she wasn't sure she wanted to talk about her date with Stacie yet. It was as if the evening had been spent in their own little bubble, where nothing else mattered, and Beca didn't want that to end just yet. With that thought alone, the big smile was unconsciously plastered back onto her face, as she pulled her headphones back on and heard the familiar bass of David Guetta's Titanium swim into her ears.

XXX

 **A/N: Apologies for the late update, I really wasn't joking when I said this chapter was proving a struggle to write. I did, however, make it a little longer in order to make up for the lateness. I'm not completely happy with it, but I think if I stare at it anymore I will slowly go insane.**

 **Anyways, I hope you enjoyed it. I've made a start on the next chapter already, so hopefully my next update will be sooner rather than later.**

 **Thanks again for all the follows and faves, I can't stress how crazy it is to know that 70 people are waiting on an update. Crazy good though! I'm going to stop now before this author's note turns into a third 'Beca Mitchell' ramble...**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: I'm back at it again with the white v... wait, I mean update. If you visit the internet often you should get that reference, if not, just forget I said anything.**

 **So, here is chapter six! Cheers again for the continued support. Just a shout out to the people who took the time to review this fic; I really like hearing your feedback. In my past author's notes I haven't really address you guys, so I thought I'd give it a mention here. Writing a review is a bit more personal than pressing the follow button, so I mean it when I say thank you!**

Chapter Six

To say Beca dislikes early mornings would be an understatement.

Beca despises early mornings.

Waking up to a blaring alarm, the sun beaming through the shade at just the wrong angle, (A strip across her eyes if anyone was wondering), the ridiculously thin glazing of the apartment building making the sound of the busy city appear too loud for the sixth floor - The list goes on.

However, this morning whilst slumped over a mug of black coffee at the breakfast bar, she could add Stacie and her 'friend's late night/early morning not so quiet antics to the list. If the description of the previously mentioned poorly glazed windows was anything to go by, the interior walls of their apartment were of the same quality.

The 'noises' had died down at around seven this morning, but muffled chatter continued for another hour and a half. This is what brings a very grumpy and very tired Beca to make coffee at nine. Yes, nine; on a weekend! Now it's not say Beca didn't try to ignore it and get some sleep; her headphones were securely glued to her ears for the first two hours, but they restricted her from sleeping in any position other than her back and eventually it grew uncomfortable. After that, she even resorted to playing her music through her speaker, but the crazy cat lady from 5B gave her the second volume warning text of the week.

It seemed Ms Morrison had lived in this apartment building since the finalization of her divorce, and much to the occupants dismay the landlord constantly put up with her shit; in fact, both Stacie and Beca were convinced he had a thing for her. The woman was probably in her mid-forty's and had moved from one floor to the next due to her never ending petty noise complaints against her neighbours. After a small debate about her cats being let loose in the apartment building getting out of hand, Beca was the first to point out to the woman that she could understand why she had gotten divorced. It's safe to say her comment was not well received and both (because Stacie was lumped with Beca due to them rooming together) of them have been on thin ice since.

Once she had been acquainted with Beca's hobby, Ms Morrison had some very strong opinions about it. First, the lady the broom technique – the sound alone was enough to make Beca rebel and turn the dial further up on the sound system. Gradually, that method became ineffective, so Ms. Morrison did what she does best; complain to the landlord.

After a lot of grovelling – on Stacie's part – and an organised meeting supervised by their landlord they came up with the 'Warning Text' idea. Stacie had dedicated her entire afternoon to fix the damage. Two cakes were made for very annoyed lady downstairs, whilst **five** cakes were baked for Beca in order for her to agree to exchanging numbers with the "bat shit crazy cat lady" to put the warning text method into place. Three texts in one week and they were out... apparently. But after the third week it had started Stacie swayed their landlord into a second chance and it only cost her two opened buttons on her shirt. But Beca had felt guilty about the whole situation regarding Stacie (the crazy bitch of 5B can suck it) so now she was on her best behaviour.

Beca was pulled from her thoughts as voices travelled down the hallway. She let out a groan, and dropped her head to the kitchen counter.

"So, we should hang out sometime, baby" Mr shirtless said as he was being led to the door by Stacie. Thankfully both of them were relativity clothed and decent unlike last night; which Beca was highly appreciative of it.

Stacie threw her head back, letting out an over-exaggerated laugh, glancing Beca as if to say "Is this guy for real?" She placed her hand on his shoulder, and then trailing her finger down the centre of his chest, "Baby..." she said mocking his previous tone "I told you last night, sex is great with someone the first time, after that it loses its mystery. You said you understood before we left the bar" she pouted.

"Yeah, no, I do. But maybe I can change your mind if we went out one time?" Beca had to commend the man for his commitment. Most guys leaving their apartment in this situation tried to act indifferent and then probably went home to tell their buddies they had to brush Stacie off, instead of the other way around. Today, Mr Shirtless was really putting in the effort; she respected that.

"Oh, many have tried and failed there. I assure you, you're not the first and you won't be the last to try" Beca chipped in, as she sat watching the encounter, sipping her coffee with her smirk in place. Stacie simply shrugged at him in agreement, as she leaned beside him and opened the door. A quick peck on the cheek and a gentle shove, she shut the door and he was gone.

Stacie made her way over to the stool opposite Beca and leaned over, taking her hot mug of coffee and putting her to her lips.

"You know, we have this machine over there that actually makes a full cup of coffee?" she said pointing over to the coffee maker, he voice dripping with sarcasm. Stacie simply feigned shock, as the DJ shook her head, getting up to make another cup.

"So..." Stacie said looking at Beca expectantly. She knew exactly what her roommate was getting at, but instead decided to share her annoyance about her lack of sleep.

"How did I sleep? Great, thanks for asking. The loud sex didn't wake me once." she sighed, returning to her seat with more coffee. "Oh, good, because we honesty tried to lower the volume..." Stacie shot back, a giant grin on her face. Beca simply glared in response.

"Although, I usually love the sarcasm _so early_ in the morning, please tell me how your date went? Judging by your mood, I'm guessing you didn't get laid?"

Beca blinked owlishly, a blush creeping into her cheeks "Dude!" she yelled.

Undeterred by her reaction, Stacie continued letting out a sigh. She paced her arms on the counter, leaning closer to Beca, "Details" she breathed. It was Beca's turn to sigh then; she rolled her eyes, but complied.

"We met at the bar, had some drinks, danced a little" Stacie raised her eyebrows at that and cleared her throat, causing Beca to stop mid sentence. She shot her a warning glare before Stacie gave her an apologetic looking and brought her hands to her cheeks, resting her head atop, staring at Beca as if she was a Mother telling a child a bed time story.

"Went for a walk, and came home. It was pretty non-eventful actually" she continued nonchalantly. Stacie frowned, returning to an upright sitting position, "Beca Mitchell does not come home after midnight on a date with a smile on her face because it was 'uneventful'" she shouted using air quotes. "Now, spill!" she demanded, slamming her coffee down.

"Fine" Beca whined. "We kissed. Twice! And it was seriously awesome" she replied, attempting to fight back the smile unsuccessfully, averting eye contact. Stacie let out a noise similar to a whoop followed by a wolf whistle, causing Baca to jump, almost spilling her coffee. It seemed her best friend was as excited at the current events as Beca was on the inside. Eventually she let her facade slip and the brunette was back to grinning like an idiot.

Stacie stood up from her chair and gave her a high five, and then was suddenly bombarding her with questions "So, was she a good kisser? What was she wearing? Did she like that ridiculous dive bar? Where did you walk? Actually, why did you go for a walk? It was, like minus two last night!"

After a failed attempt to leave the kitchen and into the safety of her room, she gave in, going into all the details and specifics Stacie demanded. Once the taller woman was caught up, they had moved to the sofa and both tucking into a bowl of cereal. Due to Stacie's excitement about the whole thing, Beca had returned to cloud nine she was abruptly kicked off last night when she returned to her room and kept awake. However, as always Beca was quick to forgive her best friend and they slipped back into their less sarcastic conversation patterns.

Stacie was about to say something when Beca's phone chimed on the table. A quick look was exchanged between them until they were both lunging for it, much like the night before, however this morning included spilt milk down Stacie's pyjama top and Beca gaining victory.

 **Chloe [10:34]: I had fun last night ;). Are we still on for coffee? xoxox**

 **Beca [10:34]: Me too. Yep, should we say 2pm? Where we go is up to you. Y'know, surprise me ;) xoxox**

After pushing send, the stare Stacie was burning into the side of her face was becoming unbearable. "We're going for coffee" she beamed, actually _beamed_ and went back to her cereal. The nudge she received sent the contents on her spoon to drip back into the bowl. "You could have had coffee last night, if you know what I mean"

If Beca's reaction was anything to go by, Stacie could tell her line had its desired effect, turning Beca into a spluttering mess. This only made her laugh turn into a very loud cackle, but Beca had knitted her eyebrows together in confusion suddenly, returning her attention back to her food. "C'mon, Becs, coffee is code for sex? I thought I taught you better than this" she mocked. When there was no reply, Stacie turned to face her.

"What's up now? You can't possibly be stressing about your coffee date already, it's not even eleven yet!"

"No, it's not that, you just reminded me of... No, never mind. I'm not going to worry about it until Monday." She didn't sound all that convincing though, but Stacie knew she had already pushed her luck enough this morning, with the loud sex all night and demanding all the details of her date...

"OK, so we'll both worry about it on Monday then" she said with a shrug and a reassuring smile. Little did she know, Beca was trying to convince herself of her last statement more than she was Stacie, so she caved, instantly.

"It's just, Chloe seemed like she didn't want me to go into the apartment building, never mind her actual apartment" Beca didn't try to hide the uncertainty in her voice, it seemed her roommate was already aware of her concern on the matter.

"Are you sure you're not just over thinking it?" Stacie offered. "Because you know you do that, a lot"

Beca leaned forward, placing her bowl onto the coffee table and grabbing her phone. She sunk back into the couch, pulling her legs underneath her. "Not this time. Maybe if she'd just protested when I said I'd walk her home, but as soon as we got there, she was already making up excuses for me not to go up" once the words left her mouth, she realised how it sounded."Not that I wanted to go up. Like, for... I'm not a sex hungry maniac I wasn't even thinking about that! I just didn't want to say good-bye at the park, you know?" she added in a quick breath.

Stacie could sense Beca's insecurities coming out, and stepped straight best friend mode, overlooking the fact Beca just said 'sex hungry maniac' in a sentence. "I get it, Beca. But maybe she didn't want to think accepting the offer to walk her home meant that she wanted that too?" Judging by a lack of reply, Stacie thought of more possible explanations "Or she might have a roommate? I'm sure if roles were reversed, you wouldn't want to bring her up if you know I was here, right?"

Beca nodded her head slowly, as if she was contemplating "Yeah, I guess" she replied weakly. "You're probably right, I'm just overanalysing it."

The more she thought about it, Stacie was probably right. Maybe Chloe was just trying to reassure her, seen as Beca was awkward the majority of the evening. To be fair, Chloe had been reassuring her since the start of the date, so why wouldn't she continue to do so at the end of the evening. Yeah, Stacie was definitely right; after all they were meeting for coffee today, so Chloe must like her back.

XXX

Beca walked down the sidewalk, her phone in hand, focussing intently on the screen. Chloe had gotten back to her shortly after breakfast, sending her an address for a coffee house called Cup of Joe. Seen as Beca had never heard of it, she decided to enter the details into her phone, putting her complete trust into iPhone maps. Although it took her the longest route possible, she eventually found it and was currently smoothing her hair out whilst looking into a car wing mirror in front of said coffee shop. One last glance at her reflection, and a mental pep talk, she pushed the door open. A warm breeze hit her face, rendering the adjustments she'd just made to her hair completely useless.

The DJ took a deep breath and made her way to the counter, which was occupied by a blonde woman who was currently miming to a Taylor Swift song playing in the background. As Beca stood at the counter, waiting to be served, the woman's miming turned to rather loud singing, whilst she wiped down one of the nozzles on the coffee machine, unaware of her waiting customer. Beca cleared her throat, making her presence known, as the plump lady swivelled around to face her. Her facial expression seemed to range from "Can I help you?" to "What do you want from me?"

Beca smiled shyly, pointing at the board behind her, "Urm, hi. Can I just have a coffee, no milk?" she asked with a slight nod of the head. The other woman quirked an eyebrow, before completely ignoring her question "Wait, are you here to meet a redhead?" she asked like it was a form of a pleasantry. The brunette stepped back a little, unable to hide her confusion "I-How-Yes" she stammered.

"Thank god, I've been asking every customer that question for the past twenty minutes"

The Australian woman threw her cloth into the sink behind her, giving her hands a quick wipe on her apron. She flashed Beca a wink and a wide grin. "Fat Amy" she said, offering her hand. Beca simply gave her an exasperated sigh and a confused reply "Erm, Beca. Is Chloe, like, here?" she asked turning to quickly scan the tables, completely weirded out by the whole exchange.

Fat Amy followed her quick sweep of the store and made her start on her coffee order. Ignoring her question a second time, Fat Amy came back to the counter, slightly leaning over it, waving her finger, signalling Beca to move closer; she hesitantly obeyed.

"Chloe will have a large caramel latte, extra sugar. I'll add it to your order, you can pay. But it's important you remember her coffee order in the future, because when I meet you again, I want you to ask for it without being told, then I know you're serious about our Red, ok?" she whispered at the beginning, but her volume increased near the end, Beca thought it was the woman's way of sounding intimidating. She couldn't lie, it sort of worked, but 'Fat' Amy didn't need to know that.

With her signature smirk and the 'don't care' attitude in place, Beca pulled away to a safer distance and replied in an overly sweet tone, "Well then, I'd like to add a caramel latte with extra sugar to my order."

"The sugar" Far Amy pointed towards a condiment stand just to the right of Beca "is just over there" she quipped, matching Beca's tone. "Perhaps you should grab a sachet for yourself whilst you're there; it might sweeten your mood..." Beca let out a strained chuckle, nodding her head. She was just about to tell this blonde where to go, when she caught a glimpse of Chloe at the doorway behind the counter, wearing an identical uniform to the rude Australian.

As soon as they locked eyes, Chloe was smiling that mega-watt smile of hers and making her way over. Beca stood there, trying to piece together what was happening. Between Fat Amy's cryptic, suddenly turned rude comments and the short coffee order lecture, she was unsure of what to do. Before she knew it, Chloe had rounded the counter and was enveloping her in a tight hug, resting her chin on the shorter woman's shoulder. All of Beca's thoughts silenced as the familiar scent of perfume and the hands around her waist hit her all at once. The hug was nice and Beca felt a warm spread through her body as Chloe readjusted her head and whispered an upbeat "hi" next to her ear. The brunette pretty much melted there and then and felt her eyes involuntary close at how great this hug was feeling right now.

Fat Amy placed two mugs down, clearing her throat rather loudly, pulling both women out of their moment. "That'd be $5.95" Fat Amy interjected, looking expectantly at a now slightly flustered DJ. Beca vigorously nodded her head like it would somehow make her blush disappear – it didn't. She quickly reached for the money in her pocket, which was then stilled by Chloe's hand.

"Amy, don't be ridiculous, when was the last time I paid for coffee? After all, I'm on my break, so..." Chloe interjected, narrowing her eyes at the blonde woman still staring Beca down. "You said this was a date, right?" she questioned. When there was no reply, she let out a shrug, placing her hands in the air innocently "So, short stack here is paying for the coffee" she replied looking back at Chloe, her tone slightly softened.

Beca was listening to the exchange, but it was kind of hard to follow when Chloe's fingers had interlaced with hers, just before Fat Amy started talking. She shook her head free of the thought and reached back into her pocket with her other hand "Hey, Fat Amy is right" she interrupted, placing the word fat in front of her name sceptically. "I've totally got these" she spoke, giving Chloe a reassuring smile and handing over the money. Unbeknownst to Beca, the redhead shot Fat Amy a glare as she reached for the hot drinks on the counter, then led them to table near the window.

Once they were seated, Chloe put her hand atop of Beca's that was resting on the table "Thank you. You really didn't have to pay, Amy was just..." she trailed off, glancing back at the blonde woman who had resumed to miming the radio. Beca softly ran her thumb along the redhead's, "I know I didn't have to, but I wanted to" she announced, bringing Chloe's eyes back on hers. They held each other's gaze for a moment longer than was necessary and Beca could only string together one almost coherent thought, _how can her eyes be so blue like that?_

The air seemed to be getting thicker around them, and Chloe's eyes were trailing down to her lips, and Beca's urge to kiss her there and then was rapidly becoming a need. Due to her discomfort with public displays of action, and the fact that she wasn't sure kissing would be acceptable at that moment, she averted her eyes down to the coffee in front of her.

"So, you work here part time?" she asked, stirring a spoon into the liquid, slowly pulling her hand from the table.

"Being a part-time TA doesn't pay as well as I'd like" she replied, with a slight chuckle, but her tone was almost shy. Beca couldn't help but get the impression the redhead was disappointed about working here. No, disappointment was the wrong word, embarrassed, maybe? The brunette smiled softly, she had no idea why Chloe should feel embarrassed. "We've all got to pay the bills" she stated plainly. "It's a nice place" she said gesturing to the shop with her finger, and then daring a glance over to Amy at the counter "I imagine working with Fat Amy is anything but boring" she teased. Suddenly Chloe's sad expression disappeared and she was letting out a hearty giggle "You've got that right!"

It seemed they had been talking for a mere ten minutes, before the redhead announced she had to get back to work. When Beca finally looked at the clock, she noted they'd actually been sat talking for just over an hour and had completely lost track of time. Judging by Chloe's boss calling her over to the counter, so had she. Beca retuned the cups back to Fat Amy, muttering a quiet thank-you. Once their boss had disappeared, the larger woman shifted over nearer to Chloe and nudged quietly whispering something, then disappeared down the stairs.

The redhead smiled, shaking her head at the other woman's antics and itched closer to Beca, who was now awkwardly leaning against the counter, trying to give off some sort of cool vibe; she could tell it wasn't really working, but it didn't stop her continuing to try. Chloe placed her hand on Beca's forearm, gently pulling her upright and closer towards her. Before Beca could filter the words entering her head and leaving her mouth she was talking "I wondered how long you could keep your hands off me" She didn't have time to berate herself or feel embarrassed, as Chloe was closing the distance and putting her lips on Beca's.

She had to admit, it caught her a little off guard, but she was pretty sure surprise kisses from Chloe Beale were now her favourite type of kisses. Having the upper hand, the taller woman had taken full control, and all Beca was left to do was pull her closer and just follow her lead. Thankfully, the coffee shop was empty, as the brunette pushed Chloe against the counter, the woman's inner thigh resting below Beca's waist. She was about to lift the red head up onto the work surface, utterly lost in Chloe's mouth when Fat Amy began wolf whistling from the stairs, unlatching themselves from each other slightly.

Beca's face turned a shade of red, as she stilled all her movements, unable to move out of their almost compromising position, when Amy popped her head around the door frame "Wow, Chlo, I thought you said you were keeping it PG-13?!" she yelled, as both woman erupted into giggles. This only made Beca feel more embarrassed, her face turning a brighter shade of red, as she slowly inched away from Chloe's arms. The redhead pulled on Beca's neck gently, taking in her brighter complexion and giving her a cheeky grin "You're cute when you get flustered" she whispered. Beca was about to stammer out a reply, but then Chloe was kissing her again.

Fat Amy persisted to whistle, shouting something Beca was unable to hear, as she was consumed by everything Chloe in that moment. The way they were pushing and pulling, giving and taking – it all gave Beca that clichéd fireworks exploding in her brain feeling. A new surge of confidence took over her, as she grabbed jean clad thighs and lifted the taller woman onto the counter, giving Fat Amy the finger as she continued to holler. The kiss was turning heated pretty quickly, until the bell above the door chimed and they both quickly jumped apart, Chloe returning back to the ground. All three women made awkward eye contact with the new customer, before darting their eyes around the room.

Beca and Chloe both exchanged a knowing look, and the DJ wasn't even trying to hide the giant smile that was stretched from ear to ear. It was becoming more and more obvious, biting back a smile around Chloe seemed impossible the more she was in her presence; especially when she was kissing her like that.

Returning to her slouched position – this time merely for support, due to the daze she was now in – and reached for Chloe's hand, swinging it in the new space between them. _This is so high school_ , Beca thought to herself, but continued the motion until the older woman broke the silence, "Meet me here after my shift?"

XXX


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: OK, so this chapter happened. Turns out when inspiration strikes, I drink Redbull and coffee and don't stop typing until it's finished – which is probably great for you, but not my body...**

 **I thought with this update I would give you both Chloe and Beca's point of view in one chapter, so whichever you prefer, you now have the best of both worlds.**

 **I should probably state again that I don't own the characters and all that malarkey seen as I haven't for a while.**

 **Right, well...Thanks for the continued support, you are all too kind! Excuse me whilst I go run a marathon and wrestle a bear! ARGHHH, CAFFIENE!**

Chapter Seven

 _Chloe slammed the apartment door shut, threw her bag on the floor and face planted the sofa, letting out a long sigh, "Today has been the WORST day, ever!" she whined. Her yell was muffled by the cushion._

 _Today had been a busy and eventful day. It began with a gruelling shift at the coffee shop starting at seven. Fat Amy had called in 'sick' last minute, but she had a feeling it was self-inflicted and something to do with the last double vodka jelly shot the Aussie snapchatted her in the early hours of the morning..._

 _As always, Chloe stepped up to the plate and worked both her and Amy's shift, no questions asked. After all, she, herself, had been there once or twice before and Fat Amy always did the same for her, without any qualms. The morning turned out to be busier than usual, making Chloe's shift very hectic, but by one-thirty her friend had arranged cover for the rest of the day and Chloe was off to the first of her two teaching assistant interviews._

 _After a quick change in the locker room, she was already en route to the school and mentally running through her notes from the night before in her head. A long forty-five minutes later, she was on her way to the next interview, her confidence completely shot. Turns out the interviewer was an ass-hole and took a strong disliking to her from the moment she tripped upon entering the room. No matter how hard Chloe tried to turn the situation back in her favour, she was constantly battling ridiculous questions and very obvious scoffs at her replies. To add to this, the male co-worker in the room spent the entirety of the forty-five minutes staring openly at her chest. Ever so the optimist, Chloe left the room with a stern handshake and the hopes of the next one going a lot better._

 _She stopped by a little deli in between interviews, as she had half an hour to burn. One thing she had learnt whilst here in New York is how being too early can ruin your first impression. When asking for feedback after a couple of her first unsuccessful interviews, some told her that her timing could be considered "too desperate" – apparently half an hour was a no-no here; why? She didn't have the foggiest idea, but took the given advice anyway._

 _So she decided some food and a quick re-cap of the job specification was a good call. It would also give her time to shake off the negativity of the last interview and aid putting her in a better frame of mind. However, when exiting the deli with an improved state of mind than the one she had when she walked in, a waitress collided with her path and threw the majority of a table's order on her blouse. Shit!_

 _Whatever was on the sandwiches that collided with her shirt, made itself very clear that it wasn't coming off and rubbing it furiously with a damp cloth in the rest room just seemed to spread the stain further. Before she knew it, Chloe only had five minutes to spare before her next appointment; well, at least I won't look desperate? She thought to herself as she sped off down the side walk. Upon arriving, she adjusted her blazer, that fortunately hid the worst part of the stain on her shirt, but it was still painfully visible._

 _Due to the previous events, her spirits were well and truly dampened, so she spent the majority of the second interview on auto-pilot. Reciting her practised answers robotically and nodding in all the right places. It's safe to say her heart was no longer in it, and all she wanted to do was go home and feel sorry for herself._

 _Eventually she pulled herself up from the sofa and decided to get up and change. After all, if she was going to mope around all evening, she should at least feel comfortable doing so. She made her way down the hallway whilst firing off a quick reply to Amy's numerous "How'd the interviews go, Red?" texts and went to change._

 _Today did not go the least bit how she pictured. It was suppose to go in her favour; ace both interviews and wake up tomorrow with one or both schools calling to offer her the job; but it seemed, today, the universe was against her. Forever the optimist, Chloe thought today's interviews went better than the previous ones; at least today she had an explanation for not getting the job. The last four interviews she thought went well ending in a "Sorry, but on this occasion you have been an unsuccessful applicant" letter or email. She could blame today's failure on a bitchy head mistress and a beetroot stained blouse, but that wasn't going to stop her wallowing tonight; eating too much Ben &Jerry's and shouting at the television whilst watching The Bachelor reruns._

 _A bottle of wine and four episodes later, Chloe was feeling better. Oh, and a little tipsy... A quick check of the time, she came to the conclusion Tom probably won't be home anytime soon. He had text shortly after she'd finished dinner telling her to call and update him on her interview, as he'd gone out for a couple of drinks with the guys after work. She couldn't bring herself to dial his number and hear yet another one of his pep talks. She understood he was trying to help and at first he was, but now his words were spreading thin and falling on almost deaf ears._

 _Tom would always greet her after each interview with words of encouragement, giving her a positive outlook and telling her how great he believed she truly was. When the rejections started rolling in, he was still there, standing by his previous words, a quick pep talk and a silly joke to lift her spirits. But gradually it seemed Tom's words were just repeated without the passion and belief he had in them before. Earlier tonight she couldn't face that; his empty words and disguised disappointment; so she'd put off calling until now..._

 _Chloe hovered her thumb over the call button, until she firmly pressed it, placing the phone to her ear, waiting for him to pick up, already preparing her upbeat hello._

 _No answer? What a surprise (and a relief). It was almost eleven, so he was probably a lot drunker than she was right now, and on to the next bar. The thought of Chloe sat up at home waiting for him probably a distant memory by that point. So she let out a quick sigh, turning off the television and making a start on clearing up._

 **XXX**

 _Chloe woke up the next morning in plenty of time for her shift and Tom's arm draped over her waist. She turned to face him, holding his hand firmly in place as she pulled the duvet up over her shoulders. For a few moments she just watched him as he slept, a small smile tugging at her lips, noticing the drool forming in the corner of his mouth. Chloe couldn't help but wipe it away and drying her thumb on the bed sheets with a quiet "ew" and a giggle. She started to sit up when she felt Tom stir and pull her back down to the mattress._

 _He was wearing the same dorky smile he wore every morning upon seeing Chloe's face and nestled closer into her shoulder, "Cuddle before work?" he whispered cheekily into her ear, giving the redhead those same butterflies Tom could stir up in her stomach. How could she possibly deny cuddles?! She turned to her side, wrapping his arm securely around her waist again and pressing her back into his front. Tom instantly pulled her closer, pressing a tender kiss to her neck, as they both let out a content sigh._

 _It had been a while since they'd done this, and Chloe had to admit, she really missed it. Before moving to New York, they spent every morning huddled together and wrapped in the sheets before one of them had no choice but to get up and start the day. It seemed the more mornings went by, the less they occurred lately, and almost unconsciously at the thought she sank deeper into Tom's embrace, enjoying the familiar feeling of his body against hers._

" _How did the interviews go? You didn't call me last night" he asked sleepily, placing another kiss at the base of her neck._

 _And just like that, the familiar feeling was shattered._

 _Of course Tom would ruin it, nowadays he always did._

" _I did call. Just before I went to bed, but you didn't answer" she replied sharply._

 _Chloe felt him lift his head from the pillow, his stare burning into the side of her face. She kept her eyes on the night stand beside the bed for a few seconds, before he pulled her waist gently, "Hey, I'm sorry. Going out last night wasn't planned, I had a tough day at training, and just wanted to blow off some steam, you know?" Upon hearing that, Chloe turned onto her back, giving him a pointed stare; she noted the way his eyes widened ever so slightly. She could already see the cogs in his brain turning, before he let out a defeated breath._

" _Babe, I know lately I've been a shitty boyfriend, and I'm going to be better. I promise" he shifted onto his back and looked up at the ceiling. "You deserve better and the more I fuck up, I can feel you pulling away" Tom paused, running his fingers through his hair._

 _Chloe felt a pang in her chest. He was right, she was pulling away, but so was Tom and he was making very little effort to reel her back in. Deep down, she thinks that's what hurts the most; to know that neither of them was fighting for their relationship whilst they both drifted apart. In that moment, Chloe could feel tears threatening to spill, but she'd be damned if that's how she was going to start off today; so instead she opted for sitting up both figuratively and metaphorically._

 _Tom mirrored her new position, and turned slightly to face her. She could see the sadness in his eyes as he reached for her hand "I love you, so much!" he stressed "I don't want to lose what we have."_

 _His expression was pained, the words were said with some much determination and sincerity that Chloe could feel the potential tears burn her eyes, but she fought them back. She flashed him a sad smile, her breath shaky as she exhaled, "I love you too" she whispered, giving his hand a small squeeze. He pulled back slightly and cupped her face with his hands – that movement and the look in his eyes combined caused a tear to spill free, as it tickled down her cheek – Tom gently wiped it away with the pad of his thumb and placed a tender kiss to her lips._

 _After what felt like so long, Tom was just like he was back in Atlanta and that familiar feeling was back, erupting inside Chloe's chest and engulfing her; consuming her whole. She swiped her tongue over his lip and suddenly they were kissing each other with the same passion and love they always had until recently. This wasn't a quick peck before he rushed off to work or a sloppy kiss that led to drunken sex after a night out, it was real and she was falling back in love with him all over again. Wait, what?_

 _She pulled away quickly, her eyes wide as she just replayed that thought in her mind. When_ _ **had**_ _she fallen out of love with him?!_

 _Tom looked at her confused, concern etched on his face as he frantically searched her eyes._

" _What's wrong?" he panicked._

 _Chloe shook her head, as if to shake the thought away, forcing a smile at an attempt to reassure her now worried looking boyfriend. She could immediately tell it didn't reach her eyes, but Tom didn't seem to notice. Instead he leaned back on the headboard and stretched out his arms, signalling her to move closer. Chloe shuffled over and rested her head on his shoulder, interlocking their fingers._

" _How about we go out for dinner tonight? You can tell me how your interviews went and we'll spend some quality time together. I really am sorry, Chlo. Let me make it up to you?" he placed a kiss on her forehead and brushed his thumb against her fingers, awaiting an answer._

" _That sounds perfect"_

 **XXX**

 _Months passed by and things were getting back to how they use to be since moving to the big apple. Tom had stuck to his word and he spent more time with Chloe and less time with his colleagues outside of work. That's not to say he didn't go out with them every now and then, but both of them had found an equal balance. Chloe also reduced how much she went out drinking with Fat Amy, and arranged date nights on a regular basis. Things were improving between them, as they communicated better and actually started enjoying each other's company again._

 _Chloe had come to realise that she'd always been in love with Tom, even during their rough patch, she had just forgotten how he could make her feel. The way her heart would flutter when they kissed good-night or how her body seemed to tingle when he looked at her in that certain way. Eventually, she felt that familiar feeling all the time and she was happy, just like she was in Georgia._

 _Gradually, life got in the way again. The rent on their apartment increased, causing them both to work longer hours. The pressure mounted for Chloe as she still wasn't getting anywhere when applying for TA jobs. They quickly fell into the same pattern, but this time both of them willed themselves to fight for their relationship, as the fear of returning to the same hump scared them much more than they'd like to admit._

 _Both of them returned home at a similar time and they were finally able to have dinner together. Tom cooked and Chloe 'supervised'. The wine and the conversation was flowing, and even though both of them were tired from a long day, they were happy to spend the night in, curled up on the couch._

 _Chloe had had a particularly rough day looking for job postings, but coming up empty. They were well into a school term, and ads were scarce these days. It was becoming increasingly difficult to stay motivated and not let the frustration get to her._

 _From a young age, Chloe had a happy and bubbly personality, with a constant smile painted on her face and her heart on her sleeve. It wasn't until she got older, that she realised nobody can be happy all the time - however, with practise, she learnt not to let it show, because people expected Chloe 'ray of sunshine' Beale all of the time. It took some adjusting, but she buried her feelings a little deeper and deflected them with her smile. She would still express her feelings freely, it was hard for her to bottle them up, but she much preferred being the comforter, oppose to the comfortee._

 _So when Tom asked her about her day, she smiled and told him all about it and he returned her gaze and nodded, then proceeded to ask the question that always seemed to spark some tension as of late._

" _Heard anything back from the teaching jobs?" he asked expectantly._

 _He was just making conversation; she tried to convince herself through gritted teeth. She put that trying smile on her face and let out a sigh "With the school term, the timing is a little off. But I think I'm just going to focus on the job in hand right now, you know? Rejection can be hard on a regular basis" she bitterly chuckled._

" _Chlo, you can't give up on teaching yet. It's your dream, you're amazing! Something will come up, you just need to keep putting yourself out there"_

" _That's easy for the overnight baseball coach to say..." she muttered. Perhaps that was a little out of turn, after all Tom didn't say anything wrong, but she was highly strung about the subject._

 _Tom raised an eyebrow, and placed his cutlery down on his plate, pushing his chair slightly out from under the table "Woah, what's that suppose to mean?"_

" _Hey, look, I'm sorry, I didn't mean that. It's been a long and stressful day. I shouldn't be taking my frustrations out on you. Please, forget I said anything?" she reached out for his hand._

 _Before Tom could reply his phone began ringing. Both of them looked down at the device on the table, as he picked it up and placed it to his ear. He stood up and started walking down the hallway as Chloe strained to hear the one-sided conversation. After a few minutes, he returned to the kitchen and stood behind her chair. He placed a hand on her shoulder, and spoke calmly, but hesitantly "Hey, I'm going to grab a beer with the guys, I think some space right now might do us both some good" Chloe could already see in his eyes he was internally battling with his decision, but she could also tell he wasn't going to change his mind._

 _Before she had a chance to reply, Tom's ringtone was blaring out for a second time. He pressed a quick kiss to her check and in less than three strides he was already at the front door, pulling at the lock, and talking into his phone._

" _Should I wait up?" she shouted after him, but the door had already swung closed and he was gone. She let her shoulders slump, and looked down at the unfinished food on both of their plates, letting out a deep sigh; she rose to her feet and started clearing up._

 **XXX**

"Meet me after my shift?"

 _Hmm, let me think? Fuck, yes! Well not fuck yes – that was a bit of an unfortunate pun. Well not unfortunate, 'cause I'd really like to... No, I wouldn't. Chloe is so much more than a quick fu..._

 _Wow, dude, you even ramble in your own thoughts now? Just, wow!_

Beca was suddenly hyper aware of the expectant look Chloe was giving her – not to mention the way she had inched much closer – she could see Fat Amy out the corner of her eye, still stood at the door frame, now frantically waving her hand in the air, urging Beca to her friend.

"I was honestly just going to sit in that corner table and wait anyways" she replied nonchalantly, looking away and bobbing her head to the table in question. She felt the warmth of Chloe's hand on both her cheeks, as she pulled her face back to hers. With a quick kiss and giggle, the redhead sauntered off back around the counter, "Another coffee then?" she asked.

Beca could only nod in response, the movement rendering her speechless. She walked back over to the table in the corner and tried to prevent the blush rising in her cheeks, pondering the absurdness of Chloe's effect on her. The way she had just unknowingly turned her into a pile of goo, paired with the fact they just met a couple of days ago made Beca wonder how the redhead was capable of such things.

Chloe sauntered over with her coffee order, before an unexpected line formed at the counter. They both stole glances at each other, before Beca realised Chloe was becoming easily distracted by it and if Fat Amy's loud commotion was anything to go by, she wasn't making coffee as well as she usually did...

Sitting in a coffee shop for three hours alone could be considered creepy, but sitting in a coffee shop for three hours waiting for the super hot barista to finish her shift was totally normal – that's what she told herself anyway. Lingering stares, along with quick glances at Chloe's certain _assets_ probably didn't help, but whatever. In all honesty, Beca couldn't stop the smile that had taken permanent residence on her face as she just sat in a trance watching Chloe clear the tables, take drink orders and interact with people. Albeit, Beca had spent a couple more moments mulling over the thought of customers thinking she was a stalker or something, but judging by the knowing smiles Chloe would occasionally flash her, it didn't matter.

Once Chloe's shift was over, Beca was starving. The coffee shop had been busy the majority of the afternoon, and after much debate she decided against ordering food, and just asking Chloe out to dinner once she'd finished. In fact, Beca had spent the last forty-five minutes trying to think of a way to ask her without it sounding formal or desperate. When the time came, she just outright asked, a bold move she was blaming on her caffeine rush.

Chloe accepted her offer with a wide grin and a comment about being wined and dined, causing Beca to let out a scoff and the shake of her head. They hailed a cab once they'd bid farewell to Fat Amy and were stepping onto the side walk outside a run-down looking diner. Beca made her way to the door pushing it open for Chloe "Seen as you were mocking me earlier, I thought I'd non-wine and actually dine you this evening. Surprise!" she announced with a smirk, accompanied by non-committed jazz hands. Chloe fake pouted for a moment, before stepping inside with a giggle, "A dive bar and now this _cosy_ diner? Whatever next, Mitchell?" she teased.

They talked over burger and milkshakes, the conversation flowing naturally with only minor pauses between topics. Beca didn't want to put all her eggs in one basket right now, but she felt even though she'd only managed to kiss Chloe twice (and a half) today; the second date was going better than their first. As for the kissing part, Beca was quite confident she could make up for that.

After a little squabble over who was paying the check, they were on their way back to Beca's place. She had stammered out a lame excuse about cab fair and the cold when Chloe quickly interrupted to agree.

 **XXX**

As Beca turned her key in the lock, she paused with the door half open, praying silently that Stacie wasn't home. Her sudden lack of movement caused Chloe to walk straight into the back of her with a quiet **oft**. "When you asked me back for a drink to your apartment, I assumed we would actually be going inside" she joked. Beca let out a nervous chuckle and proceeded to open the door the rest of the way, scanning the kitchen and living room for any signs of Stacie's presence.

It wasn't that Beca didn't one the two of them to meet; she just didn't want it to happen yet. Stacie always had a habit of either embarrassing her or plunging straight into the best friend speech way too soon, and Beca didn't want anything to scare Chloe off. To add to that, she wasn't even sure what happening between them yet, and the thought of introducing her gave her an instant anxiety attack – "Chloe, this is Stacie; my best friend and roommate. Stacie this Chloe; my... Friend? Girlfriend? The person I've made out with a couple of times?!" The whole interaction scared her shitless just thinking about.

Beca made her way to the kitchen to grab some beer from the fridge, telling Chloe to make herself at home. She noted how the redhead did exactly that; kicking off her shoes and hanging her jacket on the coat stand by the door. Beca paused, just watching her settle into the sofa, the back of her head bobbing as she made herself comfortable, sinking into the cushion and patiently awaiting her return. She felt torn between excusing herself and silently jumping up and down in excitement (that wasn't, like, a regular thing she did...) or rush back over to the beautiful woman in her living room. Instead, she took a deep breath and attempted to ignore the butterflies currently having a rave in her stomach and take the beers over at a steady pace.

Chloe pointed to the mixing board and Mac left lazily on the window seat at the other side of the room, as Beca shuffled into the cushion next to her.

"Hey, I guess now I know why you were buying headphones at an ungodly hour when I first met you" she said, taking the offered beer in her hand. Beca let out a chuckle and nodded her head, "Settle down, Miss What-Phone-Case-Should-I-Buy-Tonight" she shot back, taking a swig from her drink.

Chloe feigned offence and softly pushed her shoulder, "Hey, I'll have you know the blue one matched my eyes perfectly..." she replied with a knowing smile. The redhead placed her beer on the coffee table and reached for her phone wearing the same case from the store. She playfully held it up next to her face for added effect, "See?"

Beca leaned forward trying to grab it from the redhead's grasp "Alright, you win" she sighed, as her fingers wrapped around Chloe's. Both women took a moment to assess their new positions, before sharing a smile. Beca leaned her head a little closer, as Chloe haphazardly dropped the phone and attached her now free hand to the back of the DJ's neck. Their lips met for the fourth time that day, and Beca didn't waste a moment, as if making up for lost time.

She swiped her tongue slowly against Chloe's bottom lip and instantly tasted the beer on the redhead's tongue as it explored her mouth. The kiss took a quicker pace and Beca was feeling that longing and urgency she had felt earlier in the coffee shop when she'd lifted Chloe onto the counter. The redhead was slowly caressing her jaw with delicate fingers and Beca reached out to grab her waist with the intention of pulling her closer, when she realised she still had the beer bottle in her hand.

Sensing Beca's hesitancy in that moment, Chloe retracted her hands and they broke apart, both of them panting heavily. Beca skilfully placed her beer on the coffee table without pulling out of Chloe's embrace, her eyes never leaving hers, when she hastily reconnected their lips. In that moment, Beca wanted to communicate just how much she enjoyed kissing Chloe without using words. Where words always seemed to fail, her actions could always make up for it.

She resumed to putting her hands on Chloe's waist, as she attempted to pull the woman further down the couch. Chloe caught on to what the brunette was trying to do, and unfolded her legs from beneath her, so she was laying on her back, as Beca readjusted laying in between her legs, never once leaving her lips. Chloe's hand had slipped into Beca's hair, when the brunette ran hers up and down the outside of the taller woman's thigh.

If Stacie had told Beca that morning whilst they ate their cereal that she would end tonight with a steaming make out session led on top of Chloe on this very sofa, she would have simply laughed in her face. Funny how things go, huh?

Beca felt Chloe's mouth curve into a smile when her hand moved under her work shirt and stilled on her hip bone. Seeing this as a green light, Beca began trailing her hand up and down her side, the warm skin tingling under touch, feeling Chloe arch her back. Although it seemed impossible their kiss had seemed to have gotten even deeper; tongues dancing together in a familiar rhythm of the night before. All surroundings were tuned out, both of them completely lost in each other's mouth when Beca felt a persistent vibrating under her thigh.

 _What the fuck?_

Regaining her senses, Beca pulled back, in search of whatever was ruining a seemingly perfect moment, removing her hand from the bare skin of Chloe's hip and picking up her phone that had conveniently stopped ringing. Beca brought the device between their faces, giving it a slight wave, "I think you have a missed call" she deadpanned, looking down at the redhead before her.

Her hair was splayed out on the sofa, her lips swollen, and that same content smile on her face, but this time it seemed bigger, and Beca could see a glimmer of something in her deep blue eyes; a kind of want she hadn't seen before. If the brunette was being honest, that look alone made her want to take her there and then on that sofa, but the glimmer was gone as quickly as appeared.

Before she knew what was happening Chloe was pushing at Beca to get up and scrambling to her feet, taking the phone from her hand. The redhead unlocked it frantically, before looking back at the confused woman awkwardly leaning on all fours on the couch.

"Sorry, but I really have to go, I completely forgot about..." she trailed off leaning down to Beca and placing a firm, but quick kiss on her lips. She grabbed her bag off the floor and made a bee line for the door before Beca even had a chance to plant two feet on the floor. "Tonight was awesome! I'll call you tomorrow, Becs" she practically yelled, one foot already out of the door. When the DJ opened her mouth to reply, the door slammed and the beautiful redhead that had just made her feel _things_ was gone.

Suddenly her apartment door opened again, causing Beca to jump to her feet, her stomach doing somersaults at the prospect of Chloe returning. Her dreams were quickly dashed as Stacie stepped inside, her keys jingling in her hand "So, I just bumped into a fleeing redhead. Out of breath; little bit of sex hair happening; does she belong to you?" the tall woman smirked, throwing her keys into a bowl next to the door.

Beca inhaled sharply, holding in the air for a few seconds, as she blew it out her cheeks, "Um, I'm not exactly sure" she sighed, throwing herself back onto the couch. Stacie shut the door and slipped out of her shoes as she made her way over to her deflated best friend.

"Tell Aunt Stacie all about it."

 **XXX**


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter Eight

As each day passed, Beca was finding it more and more difficult to keep up the 'Don't-fuck-with-me' exterior she worked so hard to perfect. The usual glare and permanent frown etched into her face were slipping, leading to unscheduled daydreams causing random outburst of giggles at inappropriate times. Letting her mind wander whilst queuing for groceries or waiting on the coffee machine at work were just a couple of examples. Not to mention her mixes had taken a very strange turn; more generic pop songs were finding their way into her playlists. Cheesy lyrics were mixed with heavy dance beats on a regular basis and she didn't even feel guilty about it.

Chloe.

That was the only explanation for all of Beca's out of character behaviour lately. They had been seeing each other for longer than a couple of weeks now and Beca wasn't even ashamed to admit she saw her almost every day. If for some reason, Chloe didn't have dinner at Beca's apartment after work, or the DJ didn't call at the coffee shop when the redhead was on shift, they were in constant contact via text message. It was ridiculous; relationships were something Beca avoided, but she was actually trying to figure out how to bring up the conversation about making things official.

She hated seeing couples on the street partaking in heavy PDA like no one was watching, or those couples that never seemed to let go of each other's hands and if somehow they were forced to, there was a touch here or a touch there to make it for it. Turns out Chloe was making Beca do all of those things, and she wasn't even complaining anymore. Well, she did at first, just to keep up the exterior, but the redhead saw right through it, so Beca just succumb to it all; it was awesome.

Chloe was awesome.

Whenever she was with Chloe she felt like the butterflies in her stomach were going to cause her body to implode. The constant change between excitement and nervousness on a date would cause her head to spin, but it seemed one simple sentence or action from the redhead would put everything at ease. It was the way she smiled the same reassuring smile whenever Beca felt awkward. Or when they were walking down the street hand in hand, Chloe would always put Beca's hand in her pocket to keep them warm. Or the way she'd get so excited over silly little things that it made Beca feel all warm and fuzzy inside (Yes, warm and fuzzy, do not judge...) And when they were in the middle of a heavy make out session, she'd bite Beca's lip and tug at her hand, giving her this look that made Beca shiver, as she led them both to the bedroom.

It's safe to say that aspect of their relationship (?) was as great as everything else was with Chloe. Despite Beca's embarrassment, Stacie had pointed out getting laid made her a more approachable person; she was slowly losing all of those extra bad-ass points she'd gained whilst living in the city. Sex with Chloe was Amazing – capital A required - Amazing.

Beca always thought sex was the thing that made dating more awkward than it needed to be. She much preferred the occasional one night stand after a night out; physically connecting with a stranger always seemed easier. She could lose herself without the awkwardness of trying to impress them, eliminating the pressure of cuddles and small talk afterwards. A stranger was a lot more fourth in telling someone what they want and how they wanted in the bedroom - especially when alcohol was consumed beforehand – so Beca knew what she was doing was being well received. As far as one night stands go, she knew she was pretty skilled in that area, but finding her groove when she had feelings for the other person was usually over shadowed by her shyness.

She and Chloe's first time started slow, with hesitant touches and Beca shyly pulling at the fabric of Chloe's shirt. But as soon as they started, Beca was sure she never wanted to stop as it quickly developed into something much more passionate than Beca had ever felt. Every kiss was delicate, but sure. Every touch was precise and calculated, exploring every crevice. The feeling of Chloe's touch and tongue on her body was electric, the desire mounting and filling her with an overwhelming need to...

Yeah, Beca was in deep; she knew it, but it didn't even faze her – which was out of the ordinary, because commitment scared her half to death. She was feeling like this after only a few weeks and it took her longer to commit to Apple Music, after the trail period and that was three whole months!

 **XXX**

Stacie couldn't help but notice how chipper Beca was recently. The spontaneous humming, accompanied by the spring in her step was quite frankly just weird.

The first time she noticed it Beca was making cereal singing along to Carly Rae Jepsen's 'Call Me Maybe' on the radio. Beca _loathed_ that song. When the song first came out, it was played everywhere. Once the dance remix was playing in what felt like every club in New York, Beca would pull Stacie out and onto the next, whilst a string of curse words left her mouth. So waking up to Beca actually dancing and singing at ten in the morning on a Sunday to that song, she was a little taken aback to say the least.

It took some adjusting, but Stacie was getting use to it. Especially since Beca was more open to movie night on the weekends and more cooperative when it came to the chores table she'd stuck on the fridge once the DJ first moved in.

Stacie wasn't stupid; it was plain to see the reason for her roommate's improved mood was the redhead that she always seemed to find sat down next to Beca on her couch most evenings. How Beca would leap to the opposite side of Chloe once Stacie walked through the apartment door, trying her very best to convince her they "weren't doing anything" - It was usually always followed by an awkward ramble, and ended with both Chloe and Stacie trying their best to stifle their laughs as Beca continued to get flustered – was hilarious.

Stacie had seen two sides to Beca when it came to dating. The shy awkward Beca that would stammer out her words when talking to the cute waitress at their favourite restaurant, where Beca would order more food than was necessary just to get the chance to engage in conversation with her. Then there was the confident care-free Beca at parties who would approach any woman in the room and charm her way into their pants. Stacie will never forget the first time she witnessed that side to her; she spent several minutes gaping at the events unfolding in front of her, staring in amazement.

From what Stacie had witnessed – when she hadn't been non-discreetly asked "Don't you have that thing tonight? You know, like, out of the apartment?" – Beca was a perfect combination of both of those sides, which was sweet and endearing. Seeing her best friend's demeanour alter between confidence and the awkwardness once she thought she'd overstepped the mark made her happy. It was becoming clearer to Stacie that Beca was allowing Chloe to see all of her, which was rare.

Although they hadn't had a proper conversation yet (Beca was keeping her at arm's length) Stacie would sometimes sit in the hallway outside of her bedroom whilst the pair were conversing in the living room – not all the time, because that would be creepy and nosey and Beca would basically murder her in her sleep – she would hear Chloe reassure Beca when she needed it, or the way she would ask her personal questions without pressing the matter in order to scare Beca off. She had this strange way of reading the brunette; which was difficult. When they had spoken without Beca's almost constant supervision, Chloe was nice and genuine. The brunette had gotten the impression on more than a few occasions that Chloe liked Beca as much as she liked her.

But tonight was the night Stacie would finally be able to meet Chloe properly, without Beca monitoring the conversation and steering her away before they got any further from basic pleasantries. Tonight was Stacie's Birthday party and she was throwing it at their apartment this year.

She was currently arranging the kitchen, placing all the pre-bought alcohol on the counter top, along with an array of traditional red solo cups. When Beca and Stacie had gone to the store for supplies Beca basically turned into a six year old, picking up every item from the shelf and clutching it tightly in her grasp, whilst staring at it in amazement. No matter how many times Stacie told her to put it back, Beca demanded it went in the cart; even if it was a children's Ninja Mutant Turtle paper plate set...

Once they got to the check-out with their filled to the rim cart, Beca had offered to pay on the basis of it being Stacie's Birthday celebration. Which she was rather thankful for, seen as she was sure they didn't even need half of the things Beca had chosen; especially that Hebrew party banner that was most definitely for a Bar Mitzvah.

Once she had set up the kitchen, it was no surprise she was putting the banner in the bin, whilst Beca was busy getting ready. That's when she saw it. At first she assumed it was some sort of junk mail, but then she noticed the Residual Heat logo in the corner; that's when she immediately lifted it from the rest of the trash and quickly scanned it. Her eyebrows raised as she stood there examining it in confusion for a minute or so, until she was rushing off down the hall.

Stacie barged into Beca's room without any warning, "Why was this in the trash?"she demanded, the sound of the door slamming against the wall startling the shorter woman. Beca turned to look at her best friend and focussed her attention on the piece of paper Stacie was now frantically waving in front of her.

"Better question; why were you rooting in our trash?" she replied with a shrug of the shoulders. Stacie merely frowned, and stomped her foot much like a toddler throwing a tantrum in a crowded supermarket.

"Beca!" she warned.

Beca knew exactly what she was talking about. Last week her boss had asked her if she was free to talk in his office. Beca had to stop herself from responding with a sarcastic retort; her boss should really know if she's busy or not, right?

After twenty minutes of awkward small talk and dancing around the question he actually wanted to ask, he slowly pushed an envelope across his desk, his eyes never leaving hers. As she took the envelope into her hands, she eyed him suspiciously; awaiting instructions, expecting her job now included mailing duties. Instead he simply told her not to open yet, read it over and think about it. She'd left the office convinced she'd just been fired. Her palms were sweaty and she headed straight for the exit, expecting never to return. Once she opened it in the car park, she found out it was the complete opposite; it was a promotion – the big one...

Stacie's glare felt like it was radiating her face, as she was pulled from her thoughts.

"Stacie?" she replied as innocently as possibly.

"Beca, I'm being serious right now. You get offered a music producing job in LA and you put it in the bin?!" she shouted thrusting the piece of paper closer to the brunette's face.

"Yeah, you know, just for safe keeping." She could tell her sarcastic reply was only angering Stacie further. Usually she wouldn't really mind, but the realisation of what tonight was, she felt a pang of guilt. "And it's not a music producing job, so" she added, hoping it would calm her down a little.

"So?" she breathed, letting out an exasperated sigh. "So?" she repeated louder this time. "Where's my best friend Beca Mitchell? The girl that busts her ass everyday getting coffee for stuck up music snobs? The girl who works relentlessly on new mixes and demos for her dream job in LA? That girl wouldn't let this opportunity pass her by. My best friend Beca Mitchell would be long gone by now!" she stated firmly, searching her friend's eyes.

Beca just shrugged and began pacing around the room nervously, resuming back applying her eye-liner, in hopes of a distraction. Stacie walked towards her placing a hand on her forearm. "You do know LA means Los Angeles, right?" she asked desperately. Beca stills, putting the pencil down and finally making eye contact with her friend.

Stacie landed heavily on the end of the bed, pulling Beca into the spot next to her. " Becs, the first day we met you told me you were temporary, because, and I quote "LA is just around the corner for me"" she spoke softly, treading the fine line between Beca's emotional barriers. After plenty of experience, Stacie knew that if Beca wasn't going to open up to her now, she'd have to wait until Beca was ready, and she wasn't sure she could get through this evening without having answers. Beca's goal in life was to work in Los Angeles, after many discussions about careers, Stacie was well aware that once Beca got there, she intended on pushing herself until she finally got a paid job as a music producer.

She dared a glance at the woman deep in thought next to her, as Beca broke the silence with almost a whisper "Yeah and look how great that turned out?" she sighed, pulling at a loose thread on the bed spread. Stacie leaned closer and gently knocked her with her shoulder.

"Great if you ask me, here's your ticket! Granted, it might not have been _just_ around the corner, but here it is" Stacie waved the letter one last time before placing it on her knee, "You're back on track, you need to do this. If you don't, you won't forgive yourself" she pleaded.

Beca let her eyes wonder to the white piece of paper as she spoke surer than before "Yeah and what about my life here? Just drop everything and go? How will you make rent? It took you a month to find me as a roommate, Stac, I can't just leave you in the shit with that. What about Ch..." she stops herself. She hadn't even admitted that to herself yet, let alone clue Stacie in. Although it was true, Beca couldn't go to LA, not now that she had Chloe. She wasn't prepared to walk away from that, even if their relationship wasn't carved in stone yet...

The silence that hung over them deafened Stacie's ears. She knew Beca had taken to the redhead, but she had no idea the brunette was willing to give up her dreams for her after just a couple of weeks together.

"Is she worth it?" she asked quietly.

"That's the problem; I don't know yet, but I can't leave without being sure."

"Do you love her?"

Beca's eyes bulged at the statement, holding her palms out at Stacie, "Woah, love is... That's a big word for- well for whatever is happening between us. I don't even know what we are anyway."

"Becs, if you're sacrificing your dreams for her, then there has to be something there"

"There is. I know it. I can feel it. I'm not sure it's quite love yet, but eventually, I think so" she shrugged, her eyes burning holes into The Black Keys poster on the wall in front of her.

"And LA?"

"You said if I don't go, I'll never forgive myself, right? That's how I feel about Chloe right now. You really want to know how that ended up in the trash?" she asked, poking her finger at the letter on her friend's knee. Before Stacie could respond she delved right in before she lost her nerve. After all the thought had been keeping her awake for the past couple of nights and Stacie always was good at giving her advice.

"I was emptying my work bag, not really thinking too hard about what I needed and what I didn't and I just put it in the bin with some empty M&M wrappers and some magazines without really thinking. If I can disregard a letter representing my dream so easily, I thought maybe it belonged in the trash, you know?" she shrugged, pulling at the now frayed piece of cotton on the sheets.

"Beca, you really need to talk to Chloe about this."

The DJ opened her mouth, before snapping it shut, "You don't need to mention the job offer, but you need to know where both of you stand. If this isn't as serious for Chloe as it is for you, then maybe you need to rethink your options?" Stacie offered, smoothing the letter free of its crinkles. Beca simply nodded, as the taller woman rose to her feet and handed the paper back to her. She stood up straight, putting on the authoritive voice she always used whenever Beca looked at her with that same confused, but pleading expression.

"Now, you're going to put this letter in a safe place and finish getting ready. It's my party and we're having a good time, OK? Just dancing, drinking and having a good time. Forget about it for tonight, but tomorrow you need to talk to Chloe" she instructed.

"Sounds good to me" Beca deadpanned.

 **XXX**

 **A/N: So for the first time ever, I actually have a plan for this and the next chapter. Usually I kind of just sit in front of my laptop, and hope for the best. Don't get me wrong, I do already know where the story is going, it's just a bit more organised than usual. This chapter was initially going to include Stacie's party and this other thing , but I thought it would be too long, so... Part one – Yay (?)**

 **Again, thanks for all the love, (Did I really just say that? ...) all the reviews give me mad feels (What is happening right now? ...) This just took an unexpected turn to AWKWARD. I'm going to go, like, now, and just stop typing immedi...**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: So, it turns out me and plans aren't a good combination when it comes to writing. Firstly, I repeatedly changed the plan, secondly I got so caught up in the plan making that I couldn't get chapter started without pressing delete, and thirdly I can't really follow plans...**

 **So this explains why you now have two chapters in one update; so I guess it's worked out in your favour.**

 **Just a quick side note; I do not own Pitch Perfect or the characters and all the mistakes are that of my own.**

 **XXX**

Chapter Nine

"Do you really need another shot?"

Beca was losing track of how many times she'd asked Stacie that question. She had lost count after the sixth, and it wasn't like Stacie was listening to her anymore anyway. Her last reply had been "God, Beca, ask me one more time and I'll play the Peanut Butter Jelly song on repeat all night!"

Beca stopped asking.

Eventually she just let Stacie be; after all it was her party and hearing that song once this evening was more than enough. The party was in full swing, everybody had shown up and the alcohol was most definitely flowing, straight into Stacie's cup.

The apartment quickly began filling up with people. Stacie's friend's from work, college, bars, past hook-ups, the coffee shop down the street; basically Stacie had a lot of friends. Beca knew some of them, but she tended to keep herself to herself in crowded social situations until her fifth whisky and coke, then everything seemed to get a little blurry. Despite there being a room full of people, Stacie kept Beca close, introducing her to the people she hadn't met when intoxicated and the people she had; which usually led to the "Remember the time you..." part of the conversation where Beca would internally cringe and turn a rather bright shade of red.

 _Rapping 'Ice Ice Baby' on the karaoke and falling off the stage happened just that one time, why did they always feel the need to bring it up?_

Once they approached a new group, it seemed to follow the same pattern. Pleasantries and old stories followed by a round of shots for the Birthday girl, but it always ended with Stacie spotting a newcomer and dragging Beca over to restart the process. The alcohol was starting to take effect when Stacie's sweep of the room consisted of the same people and conversation, unbeknownst to everyone expect Beca.

Finally, Chloe joined the party and Beca left Stacie in the hands (literally) of some friend of a friend, but she didn't seem to mind, so Beca turned a blind eye and all her attention on Chloe. If she was being honest with herself, Beca had spent the entirety of the party both anticipating and worrying about her arrival. Part of her couldn't wait to see her, which she noticed was now a regular feeling. However the other part of Beca couldn't get the conversation she'd had with Stacie out of her mind. Once Beca had quite literally thrown her dream away, she didn't over think it. But the next day she couldn't quite shake the thought of the consequences of her actions; it could quite possibly be the opportunity of a lifetime, or her only opportunity... After her conversation with Stacie earlier tonight, it was the only thing she could think about. Her best friend's reaction alone sent the DJ's mind into overdrive; there was a folk in her road, but which path should she take?

"What are you thinking?" Chloe asked returning from the kitchen, handing over a drink. The redhead took a seat next to her on the ledge by the window and gave her a playful nudge, as she took a swig from her cup. Beca let out a sigh, followed by a quick shrug; she couldn't bring herself to lie to Chloe, but spilling her guts at a party definitely wasn't the setting she wanted for this conversation. Judging by the trace of concern in Chloe's eyes, Beca's response wasn't going to suffice, so she turned to face her.

"Crowded parties aren't really my thing, you know? Throw in the fact that this one is happening in my apartment and my stress levels increase."

She let out a nervous chuckle; that statement wasn't a lie, drunken parties weren't her favourite environment and in the past she and Stacie's apartment had been burned before. Beca will never forget the first house party they had – it was mayhem. Everything that could have gone wrong _did._ Vomit on the bathroom walls, cigarette burns in the couch cushions, used condoms on Beca's bed, a stolen iPod from Stacie's nightstand... the list went on. Ever since then, Beca took some major convincing to throw another one, but Stacie came up with new and improved precautions each time she persuaded Beca to allow it. Tonight wasn't their first rodeo, but the potential of disaster still made Beca feel stressed.

"Going to a party at someone else's house is a whole lot more enjoyable than it is when it's your apartment" Beca added.

Chloe shuffled closer to her "Well, you know what was missing at your last parties?" she asked.

"What?"

"Me" Chloe replied matter-of-factly. "So, drink that..." she motioned to Beca's cup, "...and let's dance" She sauntered off, turning around to steal a glance at Beca now chugging her drink. She threw her head back with laughter, as the brunette was hot on her heels, grabbing her hand.

Turns out she was right; when Chloe Beale was at **your** party, everything else seemed to slip away; the stress and anxiety Beca usually felt disappeared, along with the thoughts of her promotion, but that probably had something more to do with the alcohol...

Stacie had roped Beca into moving the sofa out of the lounge and down the hallway, acting as a barricade to prevent anyone from going into their bedrooms. This gave them more space for a make shift dance floor and since her talk with Chloe, Beca had yet to leave it. Beca's arms acted like a magnet to the redhead's waist; her hips constantly swayed to the rhythm of the music under Beca's hands. Arms rested on her shoulders, foreheads pressed against each other's – Beca wasn't much of a dancer, but for Chloe, she'd pretty much do anything.

After a while, the pair moved into the kitchen to mingle with Stacie and some of her friends. Beca was propped up on the counter, with Chloe in between her legs as they listened to some guy – Rob apparently – try his best to woo Stacie with a story about how he recently auditioned for a new action movie. Beca was finding it more and more difficult to focus on his bullshit story, especially seen as Chloe had started rubbing circles on the outside of her jean clad thighs. She was willing herself to concentrate, right up until Chloe sank deeper into her chest and let out a content sigh - Beca was a goner by that point. The embrace was comfortable and made her heart do that stupid flip-floppy thing. In that moment, all she could think about was how much she wanted to ask Chloe to "be her girlfriend" which was annoying, because she sounded like a sixth grader.

The words had been on the tip of her tongue for about an hour now, a simple look, touch, kiss, or word would cause the urge to ask to sky rocket, until eventually Beca couldn't take it anymore. She felt as if she was bursting at the seams; a second longer and she was going to explode, leaving a jumble of non-coherent words and a possible awkward atmosphere in her wake. In an attempt of a distraction, she excused herself to the bathroom. A couple of deep breaths and a stern talking to in the mirror later and Beca had almost regained her composure. Typical things Chloe would usually say or do were driving her insane tonight; turning her into a pile of goo, maybe now was the right time to ask. But that could just be the alcohol talking...

She stared at her reflection a minute longer, toying with idea, before lightly slapping her cheeks with her hands "Fuck it. Go big or go home, right, Mitchell?" she whispered into the mirror, before yanking the door handle.

She spotted red hair and blue eyes in the crowd immediately and just stood there, admiring her. Although she'll never admit it; probably because it sounded creepy; Beca had started making a habit of standing back and just watching Chloe from a distance. It fascinated her how the woman could look so beautiful from afar. Right now, she was talking animatedly to someone, her bright smile in place, whilst her hands flailed, her attention focussed solely on the one person she was conversing with. Beca thought it was crazy how Chloe could talk to someone and make them feel so special; like they were the only person in the world. Beca was in awe, just watching her. Maybe this was love? Or maybe it was just the alcohol? She's blamed everything else on the drink tonight, so what's another to the list?

The DJ was brought out of her trance when she realised the person Chloe was actually talking to was in fact Stacie who was wearing that same mischievous grin she only ever wore when she was about to tell that same embarrassing story, which meant only one thing - Beca had a ten second window to prevent her very drunk best friend from sharing the time Beca was caught in a compromising situation with a naked girl on the kitchen counter, handcuffed to the faucet. It was a long story, but basically said naked girl was into some kicky shit and Beca had been persuaded to carry out the bizarre fantasy just before Stacie walked in after an unexpected early finish at work.

A sense of fear washed over her, along with a continuous chant of _shit shit shit_ as she pushed her way through the crowd in her living room, roughly bumping shoulders with them once her pace rapidly picked up - _Chloe does NOT have to hear this story yet, Conrad._

"Yeah, well did Beca ever tell you the time-"

Beca really didn't want Chloe to hear the end of that sentence, so purely from blind panic; she instinctively tapped Chloe's behind seeking any type of distraction, causing the taller woman to jump around in surprise. In an attempt to cover the blush that was now creeping into her cheeks, the shorter woman nestled her face into Chloe's neck, and felt a smile against her skin, as a soft kiss was placed to her temple

"BECA!" Stacie slurred, her drunken mind taking a second longer to react to Beca's presence. She placed a weighted hand on the DJ's shoulder to steady her balance before diving into her next sentence.

"You need to come and have a shot with me and Chloe, 'cause it's my birthday!" The words came out all jumbled up, separated by drunken giggles and the occasional hiccup. Beca felt a sense of relief, knowing her distraction tactic had actually worked, but something told Beca she had the large amount of shots her roommate had previously drank to thank for that.

"I honestly think you might pass out if you have any more shots, dude" she deadpanned, lifting her hand to Stacie who was now swaying on her feet.

She gasped sharply, before leaning forward to pull at the corners of her friend's cheeks, "Drunk Mitchell would definitely do shots with me" she pouted, as Beca pulled away from her grasp causing Chloe to laugh. "C'mon, Chloe, tell your girlfriend to stop being a spoilt sport" she winked.

As soon as the word 'girlfriend' left her lips, Beca's body stiffened. The sound of her heartbeat filled her ears, as she shot a warning glare at Stacie, averting her eyes from Chloe. Despite Beca's internal hysteria and her scrambled thoughts of a reply, Chloe didn't seem to notice nor react to it and instead she laced her fingers with Beca's and giggled before giving Stacie a gentle shove.

"Lead the way, Stacie"

Before Beca could figure out what was going on, her best friend was heading to the kitchen, with Chloe close behind, tugging at Beca's hand. Stacie was cheering, proceeding to inform every passer-by that she was doing shots with Beca, each word oozing with excitement.

Once they found a spot in the kitchen, Stacie unscrewed the cap from a bottle of vodka clumsily and lined up several plastic shot glasses.

"Straight vodka? Really, Stace?" Beca questioned flatly, an eye roll quickly following.

"Go big or go home, right?" she breathed with what seemed like a knowing smile. It was as if Stacie had known the exact words she'd told herself in the bathroom. Beca couldn't decide if she was encouraging or taunting her, which was absurd considering her roommate couldn't possibly have known what she had said behind a closed door.

Four shots each and an out of tune serenade of Happy Birthday later, 'drunk Mitchell' had officially attended the party. It was clear to see that Chloe was on the same level, especially when her dancing grew clumsy and her touches lingered longer. Their make-out session got more heated and Beca's hands wandered that little bit more than they usually would in public. All of these things were contributing factors to the moment Beca blurted **it** out.

"So, hey, I was wondering if you and me could be, like, official?" she placed the last word in quotations with her fingers, a cheeky grin taking over her face.

Beca didn't even feel any doubt when the words left her mouth, nor was there any form of regret. She had wanted to ask that question for eight days. Days of pondering and overanalysing how to go about asking it; her pent up worry finally subsiding and a weight lifting from her shoulders once the words had been spoken.

Granted, quickly stopping a heated kiss to down her drink and carelessly throw the empty cup over her shoulder probably wasn't the greatest build up, but she'd save the worrying about that decision in the morning, once she's sober and possibly regretful. The latter seeming to be a more looming thought, as Chloe was now just staring at her, her expression unreadable. A few seconds of silence felt like several minutes, Beca's doubt and regret on the cusp of flowing free.

 _Well, shit. This was a terrible idea..._

Suddenly Chloe was pulling at the collar of her shirt and capturing the brunette's lips in another kiss. It was different to the one they shared a minute ago; it was still heated, but it seemed desperate. From the moment their tongues brushed together, Beca was a pile of mush and the memory of her question instantly fell away. Kissing Chloe Beale had that sort of effect on her and right now she couldn't care less about an answer, just as long as she continued to kiss her like this. Beca let everything else fade out.

Eventually they parted, purely for the need of oxygen. After that kiss, Beca felt like she had instantly sobered up, just to fall into a completely different kind of drunk. Chloe had wrapped her arms around her and Beca began placing a soft kiss to her neck; her fleeting bouts of confidence back in full force, as she whispered into her ear.

"So, will you..." she paused, "be.." she left another kiss just below her jaw, "my girlfriend?" she finished.

Chloe let out a giggle and leaned into the DJ's touch, "Yes" she whispered. Although it was said quietly, Beca could tell from her tone it was sure and genuine. She pulled back slightly to look in Chloe's eyes. They were shinning in the obscure lighting from the fairy lights hung in the kitchen, staring back into Beca's, a smile was playing at the corners of her mouth, whilst her thumb brushed along Beca's wrist.

"Yes" she repeated, louder this time, her small smile developing into a smirk, "I was wondering when you'd eventually ask."

"You were waiting on me?!" Beca exclaimed.

Chloe raised a questioning eyebrow, slightly pulling away, "You've had this weird look in your eye for at least a week now" she laughed. "Besides asking if you can ask me something in a very serious manner to then ask if I want more chips or another a drink made it kind of obvious."

Well this was a new development. Beca wasn't aware she was making things so obvious; well, now that she had heard it from the horse's mouth, perhaps she could have been more discreet. There had been a few instances where she had wanted to ask, but then chickened out after the build up question.

"So, if you knew I really wanted to ask, why didn't you just beat me to it?

"At first I wasn't one hundred percent sure what you were trying to say, but once I realised I sort of already felt like you'd ask. Does that sound silly?"

Beca shook her head and gave the hands that had found their way into hers a gentle reassuring squeeze.

"Besides I watched how much effort you put in to trying to ask, so I knew you'd get there eventually. I didn't want to steal your thunder" Chloe smiled, pushing a loose strand of hair behind Beca's ear.

It was insane how sweet Chloe truly was. Don't get her wrong; Beca knew she was very considerate when it came to her feelings, with the patience of a saint when she tried to find the words to express them. But, right now, this takes the cake, because it was crazy how well the redhead already appeared to understand her. That didn't happen often in relationships for Beca, and in the odd times that it did, it usually took so much longer than a couple of weeks; after tonight she was leaning towards one of the folks in her road more than the other.

"Where did you even come from?" Beca asked in bewilderment, a smile threatening her lips.

Chloe simply shrugged, "Just shut up and kiss your girlfriend."

Beca didn't need asking twice and closed the distance between them. She felt Chloe's lips smile against hers, causing the butterflies to flutter inside her stomach. The realisation of this beautiful person in front of her was now her girlfriend washed over her and she tried to evade all of emotions she was feeling right now in the kiss. Not only was Chloe referring to herself as **her** girlfriend super sexy, but factor in the way her fingers were curling under the hem of the DJ's shirt, it was safe to say this kiss was quickly becoming less PG-13 by the second.

Chloe broke the kiss, not once taking her eyes off Beca. The way she was breathless and flustered right now, Beca would honestly continue where this was inevitably going in the kitchen, in front of all Stacie's guests. Beca immediately recognised the desire in the redhead's eyes, as she was sure she was mirroring the same look. Chloe pressed her lips together, before she spoke, her voice low and seductive; the brunette couldn't tear her eyes away from her.

"Can we get to your room?" she whispered.

Beca's head began rapidly nodding without her permission, and she quickly led Chloe out of the kitchen, weaving in and out of the small crowd that had formed in her living room. Beca hadn't quite understood why Chloe phased her last sentence as she did. At first, Beca's mind landed straight in the gutter, thinking perhaps the redhead literally couldn't wait to get to the bedroom, but once they rounded the corner to the hallway and the leather couch came into view, Beca internally cringed at her error.

Chloe leapt onto the sofa and already had Beca's bedroom door opened, when the brunette pulled harshly at the arm rest, causing Chloe to wobble and lose her footing. Just before she tumbled off onto the ground, Beca was breaking her fall, catching her just in time. Beca was on one knee, as Chloe led over it, her left hand pushing on the shorter woman's head. Once the shock and Beca's panic had worn off, both of them burst into fits of laughter, taking in their new, more awkward positions. They both got to their feet, Beca leaning in for another kiss, when she felt someone hastily tap her shoulder.

Quickly spinning around, Beca glared at a worried looking Rob.

"Dude, do you mind?!" she warned. He shot her an apologetic look, before spitting out a sentence so quickly all the words seemed to string together, "We-lost-Stacie."

Beca glared at him, "We live in a two bedroom apartment, how the hell can you lose a five foot eight Stacie Conrad?!"

He simply shrugged in response and proceeded to list off all the places he'd looked for her. Chloe put a calming hand on Beca's forearm, before she could utter her pre-prepared insult.

"Has anyone seen her leave?" she asked, turning to Rob. That question alone sobered Beca up immediately, not to mention the trace of concern she could hear in her girlfriend's (Yeah, that's right; girlfriend) voice.

 **XXX**

Once they realised Stacie was either phoneless or not answering it, Beca began to think outside the box. The idea struck her almost immediately, as she raced off to her laptop hooked up to the sound system in the corner of the room. Beca smiled fondly at a memory as she scrolled through her music library for the required song. On the third night she had moved into the apartment, Beca finally left the four walls of her bedroom and ventured out into the living room. Stacie had thrown her a beer, swearing it was the best way to get over the (mainly just Beca's) awkwardness. Several beers and Beca's iPod on shuffle later, they were both drunk and dancing on the sofa cushions to Justice VS Simian's 'We Are Your Friends'. Ever since then, Stacie had deemed it 'their song' and Beca had no choice but to dance with her whenever they heard out at a party or in a club.

The familiar bass of the song blared through the speakers. Chloe watched as the brunette frantically searched the room for any sign of her best friend. Suddenly there was a commotion by the front door, and then a figure was quickly falling through it and stumbling into an innocent by-stander on their way out. Stacie instantly locked eyes with Beca's and made her way over as fast as she could, the widest grin etched on her face.

Beca attempted to maintain a disapproving stare, but couldn't help mirroring the other woman's expression ; the pure happiness and glee of current events were evident on her face and the ridiculous drunk half walk/half run she was doing would make anyone's resolve crumble. As the tall woman weaved in and out of the crowd, Beca noticed the Birthday balloon waving behind her, as if Stacie had secured it to herself somehow. At a closer glance, she could also see how her best friend was walking with her shoulder turned slightly to the left, as if she was holding something and protecting it from the badly coordinated dancers she occasionally shouldered.

Once Stacie was in clear sight, Beca understand exactly why she was walking like that. It also explained the following balloon. She stood staring, her mouth agape, whilst a completely oblivious Stacie tugged at her hand, motioning her to dance. Which is insane, considering what was tucked tightly under her arm; _Ms Morrison's fucking cat!_

Once the shock of the sight subsided Beca wasn't sure whether she should laugh or fear of the possibility of being homeless. Instead a noise that resembled both a laugh and a groan left her lips. The laugh was more prominent as she soon realised the balloon she spotted was in fact tied loosely around the cat's stomach.

The rapidly harsh tugging on her arm caused Beca to return the present, digging her heels into the hardwood flooring of the living room, easily loosening from Stacie's grip and turning the taller woman to face her.

"Stacie, what the fuck?" she yelled, pointing at the surprisingly calm animal hugging her right side.

Stacie looked back at her confused, "What?"

"What?" Beca scoffed, "I don't know, maybe it has something to do with the cat in your hand?"

"What cat?"

"That cat, right there. Ms Morrison's fucking cat! You've kidnapped a cat. Why are you looking at me like I'm the irrational one here?!" she pleaded.

Chloe leaned over to the laptop and lowered the volume, before edging closer to Stacie and gently rubbing her finger under the cat's chin. "Oh, look at'choo. Aren't you just a little cutie" Chloe cooed in a much higher register, that was very similar to a shriek, as she rubbed her finger under his chin. The action was enough to convince Beca she wasn't actually imagining the whole thing, as she exchanged a look with the ginger animal that somehow seemed to be giving her a smug stare, as he purred and leaned into the redhead's touch.

Beca wasn't jealous of the cat, because that would be absurd, but the stupid cat looked like it was basking in the moment - _Stupid pompous cat._ Ok, maybe a little jealous...

"Right, I'm ending this! The cat..." she reached and pulled it from Stacie's embrace, "...is being returned to the crazy bitch downstairs."

Both Chloe and Stacie pouted, making Beca feel instantly guilt. It was that look that could make Beca's firm 'no' turn into a swift 'yes' in a matter of seconds whenever used correctly by either of them. She was being double teamed right now, which was unfair, but she was sticking to her guns on the matter - homelessness was something Beca was very confident she could pull off.

To make matters worse, Stacie had started to drunkenly cry, catching the attention of a few onlookers. Through sobs and sniffles, she tried her best to convince Beca to allow the cat to stay.

"But she's not home, she's in Long Island, remember? What kind of cat sitter would I be if I left him all alone?"

The DJ spoke calming through gritted teeth, "Okay, Stace. I'll let him stay, on one condition..."

The brunette's tears were quickly wiped away with the back of a hand, as she began bouncing on the balls of her feet, nodding her head and beaming.

"Name the cat." Beca smirked as she watched her best friend's face fall.

 _Hook. Line. Sinker._

"So that settles that. This little guy is being returned" she looked at Chloe who was about to say something, before cutting in "Returned to the other three cats in Ms. 'I hate any form of noise' Morrison's apartment. Now, Key" Beca demanded, turning her attention back to Stacie.

The tears were back in full force now, even her bottom lip was quivering. It was safe to say; sometimes a drunken Stacie Conrad resembled a toddler.

 _Beca, do not cave. You are stronger than this._

She placed her hand, palm up in front to reiterate her demand.

"Key?" she repeated firmly.

Stacie reluctantly pulled the desired item from her bra and slammed it down into her friend's hand with an audible humph and the stomp of a foot. Beca could hear Chloe laughing now, but she maintained her glare and stormed off, untangling the balloon form the cat.

Her exit was met with strange stares from party-goers as Stacie chanted "She took my pussy!" repeatedly the entire time, as Beca grew closer to the door. Her blush rose with each step and she silently cursed Ms. Morrison and her stupid smug fucking cat.

 **XXX**


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N 1: Wow, Chapter ten and into those double digits. I definitely couldn't have predicted this when I posted the first chapter of this story. Although, I did try to keep this chapter short and sweet; I was giving myself a limit of 1,000 words; yeah, no, that didn't happen. My mind literally wouldn't shut up – sorry.**

 **A/N 2: I know I am starting sound like a stuck record, but honestly thank you so much for all the faves, follows and reviews! And just a second thanks to all the guests out there reading this story; didn't want leave you all out; so yeah, cheers!**

 **A/N 3: So it's pretty late where I am... This isn't even an actual valid author's note, I just thought why not add to that word count, y'know...**

 **XXX**

Chapter Ten

Beca opened her eyes to unexpected surroundings. She regretfully sat up in order for a better look, until she felt the pounding in her head and returned back to laying down. It was then she remembered why she was sleeping on the couch, still in the hallway of her apartment.

Shortly after the cat incident last night, Stacie became too drunk to continue partying, resulting in Beca and Chloe ushering everyone out and into their awaited cabs outside. Turns out dealing with a small crowd of drunk people was far easier than dealing with one drunk Stacie.

Chloe had managed to calm her down from the hysterics of the loss of the cat, whilst Beca watched and sulked in the corner; she still wasn't over the embarrassment of her best friend's previous comment. Stacie also glared at Beca the entire time and refused to be in the same room with the 'cat thief'. After half an hour of the silent treatment, Stacie forgot all about her anger towards Beca, and demanded that she stroke her hair because she was feeling 'sleepy'. Which Beca made out was the biggest inconvenience ever; which it kind of was, because it was proving impossible to eat pizza with one hand...

Chloe hung around for a while and helped clean up a little, no matter how many times Beca told her she didn't have to. In actual fact, the DJ really wanted to talk about their previous conversation before they were interrupted, but it seemed her drunken roommate had different ideas. Part of her wanted to check Chloe still felt the same, now that she had sobered up, but a bigger part of her just wanted to have the talk because it would lead to certain activities they could do in her bedroom.

After ten minutes of pleading, convincing and Beca using her toddler voice, both woman managed to get Stacie into bed, but at a cost. In order for Stacie to stay in bed and go to sleep, Beca had to spend the night on the couch, just outside Stacie's door, where she could see the DJ at all times. A quick handshake and the readjustment of the sofa in the hallway, Stacie kept up her end of the bargain and even allowed Beca to walk Chloe to her taxi outside.

As soon as they were walkind down the first flight of stairs, Beca couldn't shake her need to address their situation, so she just jumped straight in, "Chlo, did you mean what you said?" she asked nervously, tugging at the redhead's hand and bringing them to a stop. The silence became too much, before Beca added in one short breath "Like, before Stacie went MIA..."

She continued to look down at the ground, rubbing her shoe on a scratch in one of the concrete steps.

"Beca?" she said firmly, lifting her face to look at her, "I did. I really did" she beamed. Beca let out a chuckle, and bit her lip, "You do mean the whole girlfriend thing, right? Because you could be talking about when I asked what pizza toppings you wanted-"

"We're having a moment right now, don't ruin it with pizza!" Chloe interrupt with a quiet laugh.

"Ruin a moment, with pizza? Are you mad? Yeah, I take it back, our relationship would never work if that's your stand on pizza" she deadpanned.

Chloe simply shrugged, "Surely I taste better than pizza?"

Beca's signature smirk was back, "Mmm, I don't know. Maybe I need reminding?" she asked coyly. Chloe closed the gap and kissed Beca hard, as she was pushed her up against the wall, hands pinned above her head. The brunette was just about to deepen the kiss, when Chloe pulled away quickly, returning to walk down the steps, like nothing had happened. She looked over her shoulder, flashing Beca a smug grin, "You can go and finish the left over pizza upstairs now and compare the two."

 _Yeah, no, Beca could live without pizza._

Stacie began to stir in her bed, bringing Beca out of her thoughts, the grin still stretched across her face. She shook her head, in order to remove the not so innocent thoughts of Chloe and got to her feet. Stacie was going to need coffee after last night, lots and lots of coffee.

 **XXX**

 **Chloe [09:48am]: Morning :). I think we should meet up later and talk about last night. A sober conversation sounds like a good idea. Let me know when you're free xoxoxo**

 **Chloe [09:48am]: And no, I'm not breaking up with you! I told you last night – no regrets. I want this. I want you, if you'll have me? Or did the pizza win last night? ;) xoxoxox**

 **Beca [09:50am]: I was totally not in panic mode over that first message. I'll have you know I actually wanted to spill my coffee upon reading it, so... The pizza put up a good fight, but it wasn't even close! Xoxoxox**

 **XXX**

Beca took each step slower than the last; causing her to be at an almost complete stop by the time she reached the top. As each step brought her closer, her self-doubt increased. Her path crossed with a resident on the stairwell, as they both did the awkward side step dance, but Beca was too wrapped up in her thoughts to care. Left step: _Should I do this?_ Right step: _Could it be seen as invading her privacy?_

By the time she was stood outside the apartment door, she repeated the line from her pep talk the night before over and over again, as she finally knocked the rhythm of the words out on the door in front of her:

Go big or go home.

If in that moment she knew what she was going to be greeted with behind that closed door, she would have walked back down the steps a million times faster than the speed she had walked up.

But that's not how things went, and it's the reason she is currently running down the street, her arms hugging her body, willing herself to keep it together. She promised herself she wouldn't cry until she reached home, but failed miserably, stopping down a back alley and leaning on a dumpster, sobbing. The tears were spilling from her eyes and onto the hand preventing her head from touching the cold mental of the bin.

Beca didn't usually cry. Never mind crying in an alley way against a giant trash can. That's when it hit her, what she felt for Chloe wasn't love; it was foolery; smoke and mirrors; and a complete lack of intelligence on Beca's part. Of course Chloe Beale was too good to be true, and agreeing to be her girlfriend was the biggest red flag Beca had completely missed, totally blinded by lust, not love.

The emotions were taking over, her knees felt weak and she was very close to sitting by said dumpster and crying some more. Instead, she stood up straight and dried her eyes with the back of her hand, noting the eyeliner smeared on her knuckles. The same knuckles that had knocked on Chloe's apartment door moments ago with so much hope. It was that thought that made her angry, as she slammed her first into the hard metal in front of her, completely numb to the throbbing pain in her hand.

Chloe hadn't answered the door like Beca had previously imagined. Instead, she saw a flash of red hair and blue eyes, pottering around in the kitchen, whilst the door was slowly opened. It seemed everything slowed down, and Beca couldn't stop replying the events frame by frame in her mind, as she slammed her other hand into the dumpster.

The apartment was a similar layout to that of her own; open living and kitchen area; but the front door was in a different place. If roles were reversed, and it was Chloe knocking on Beca's door, the redhead wouldn't be able to see the kitchen. Therefore she wouldn't have caught a glimpse of Chloe in nothing but a towel stood next to the counter, when a man wearing nothing but a pair of boxers opened the door. His short brown hair was messy, the sleep still visible in the corner of his eyes, and the trace of a smile on his face.

Beca's heart felt like it had been hit with a sledge hammer, the force of it causing her to stumble back a step, but she couldn't take her eyes of her 'girlfriend' practically naked. She could see in the other woman's eyes, Chloe was shocked that Beca was knocking on her door; after all, it made sense. Chloe always came to her and Beca hadn't even step foot into the apartment building, until now.

And, now she guesses she knows why.

Chloe lied. She stood in the alley way, letting the heartbreak overtake her.

It was all a lie.

 **XXX**


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter Eleven

Stacie felt like shit. Her head felt like there was a hammer repeatedly being whacked to her forehand. Daylight was way too bright and she was pretty sure that if she moved anymore than inch, the need to vomit would overtake her. It's a good job Beca left that bucket by her bed.

She was drifting back off to sleep when the apartment door slammed shut. The sound set off that stupid hammer and she was now fully awake, _damn._

"Why did I drink those shots?" she whispered to herself, as she reached for her phone to check the time. It was just after twelve; surely Beca couldn't be back already.

"You chickened out, didn't you?" she shouted, instantly regretting her louder volume.

No answer.

"Beca?"

Nothing.

"Hey, if I'm being robbed, please can you quietly shut the door on the way out. Slamming it closed on the way in was inconsiderate. Some people are hung-over you know?!"

 _Fuck, I'm going to have to stand up, aren't I?_

Slowly, Stacie threw the covers back and swung her legs to the floor; as she stood up, she felt the room spin, causing her to fall back down on the bed. Her second attempt went better and she was just about to walk onto the hallway when she collided with an unexpected object. Her arms flailed and the top half of her body lunged forward, leaving her legs behind. She was doubled over on something that was both soft and hard at the same time.

"Becs, I told you to move the damn sofa before you left" she groaned into the seat cushion, pulling herself upright. "My headache is not equipped to deal with this shit right-"

She stopped mid sentence, as eyes spotted the back of Beca's head leaning against the sofa. Stacie noticed her shoulders moving up and down, of course her roommate would be laughing at her misfortune right now. But then she noted how Beca's knees were brought up to her chest once she was stood up straight – this sort of body language could imply Beca was crying, which is absurd, because Beca Mitchell doesn't cry. In fact, Stacie cannot recall a time she has ever seen as much as a tear leave Beca's eye in the entirety of knowing her, _and they watched Marley and Me together._

"Beca?"

There was a sniffle and hands brought to her face, before she let out a strained, "what?"

"Why are- Are you ok?" she asked, unsure of how to deal with a potentially upset Beca. If this would have been anyone else, Stacie would have climbed over the sofa, taken a seat beside them and gave them a hug, but Beca was like a spooked animal sometimes. It was best to make no sudden movements and let her come to you, but judging by the lack of a reply, Stacie was at a loss.

She shimmied through the gap at the side of the sofa and made her way to the kitchen without uttering a word. Reaching into the cupboard, she searched for her desired item, before returning back to Beca and carefully sitting down next to her, leaning back against the couch. Stacie rustled the packet of Oreos in her hands, and offered them to Beca.

"Oreo?" she asked cheerfully, looking at the side of Beca's face. A couple of moment passed and she feared this tactic wasn't going to work, until Beca shyly accepted the offer. She was yet to make eye contact, instead staring intently at the cookie being twirled in and out of the gaps in her fingers, much like a poker chip.

Stacie shuffled a little closer, before hesitantly asking "Do you, like, want a hug? I know you're not a fan of-"

Before she could finish her sentence, Beca had dropped the Oreo and wrapped her arms around her, her head nestled into her shoulder.

"Alright then, human contact is a go. We can hug it out" Stacie chuckled, before putting her arms around the smaller woman. They stayed like that for a minute or two, before Beca pulled away and began frantically wiping under her eyes with the hem of her shirt.

"Chloe lied."

That's all she could get out before the tears started stinging her eyes again, but this time instead of trying to stop them, she just let go. She felt the wetness of them roll down her cheeks, as she pulled her knees back into her chest and cried like she had in the alleyway.

 **XXX**

She was just about to yell at Tom for opening the door. Although she wasn't technically indecent, she'd prefer the person on the other side not to see more of her than was necessary. After all it was probably just...

That's when she stopped thinking. Every single thought that was just floating around her head seemed to vanish into thin air and were replaced by the one remaining thought that never seemed to leave her mind recently.

Beca.

For the first split second she was sporting that determined look in her eye. The same one she'd had last night when finally asking the pressing question Chloe was waiting for, but that quickly disappeared. A slight flicker of confusion was wiped away completely and replaced with a deep hurt and sadness. Her eyes strayed from Chloe's and landed on a half naked Tom. That was enough to pull her out of the shock, but as quickly and unexpectedly as she had arrived, Beca was gone.

She sprung into action.

Chloe's legs began moving without her permission and she was instantaneously closing the distance between the kitchen and the door, hoisting the towel higher up her chest in the process. She squeezed through the small gap between Tom and the wall, her eyes trained on the stairwell Beca had just darted for. The redhead placed one foot over the thresh-hold when a hand was firmly placed on her forearm. She could still hear Beca's footsteps on the stairs, they were heavy and hurried, but if she was quick...

It was then the hand was yanking her back and pulling her away from Beca. In one swift motion she was back in the edge of her living room, no longer in ear shot of the brunette's footsteps and almost regained full control of her legs again. Chloe let out a bitter laugh, when she realised it was actually Tom's hand stopping her from chasing Beca.

 _How fucking ironic._

"Chloe, you can't chase strangers from our apartment wearing just that" he said coldly, gesturing to the pink towel clinging to her frame. She quickly shrugged out of his grip, catching the door that Tom was now pushing closed.

"Who was that?" Tom demanded applying more pressure to the apartment door, eventually slamming it shut. Chloe sighed, if she didn't have the stupid shampoo bottle in her hand right now, she would have managed to keep it ajar.

Her body shot back into action. Tom's persistent questions followed her down the hallway and into the bathroom, before he had a chance to battle this door, she slammed it shut, quickly locking it behind her and pulling off the towel.

Once redressed, she sat on the lid of the toilet with her head in her hands. The events of the last five minutes were finally registering in her mind. The guilt seemed to coarse through her body, making her head pound. The infamous drip of the bathroom tap had returned with a vengeance in the last week, and Chloe tried to concentrate on the familiar drip into the basin in order to stop her from feeling the churning in her stomach. Until a quiet sob passed her lips, the tears collecting in the hands over her face.

 _Knock. Knock._

"Chloe, what the hell is going on?"

The redhead quickly wiped her face and made her way over to the door. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, whilst her hand stilled on the handle. The instant her vision turned black, the image of Beca's pained expression seemed printed onto the back of her eyelids. The little composure she mustered a second ago quickly crumbled, and her cries quickly developed into low whimpers. She would give anything to have Beca smile that goofy grin and pull her into a hug. Remembering the warmth and security of Beca's embrace didn't help right now, making new tears fall down her cheeks. Her hand seemed to turn the lock on its own accord, and the door was opening. She just needed a Beca hug right now, but instead sank into Tom's embrace, eagerly waiting on the opposite side.

 **XXX**

Beca was now clutching an empty bag of Oreos and leaning into the corner of the sofa, resting her chin on the top of her knees. Her cheeks had dried and the tears had stopped; it seemed psychically impossible to shed anymore. Eventually Beca had moved to sit on the sofa, as Stacie dragged it back to its original spot it in the living room. The taller woman huffed and puffed comically in an attempt to cheer her up, but honestly Beca couldn't bring herself to smile. The past couple of weeks her face had literally ached due to the foreign act of smiling, but right now; nothing.

Both women sat in silence for several moments before Beca could bring herself to speak. When she did, her voice was thick; it croaked and cracked at the beginning and end of sentences. The tone and pitch sounded broken and she hated it. Not only did it make her look weak, but that's exactly how it made her feel.

Weak wasn't something Beca ever wanted to be. Sure, she had feelings just like everyone else, but they never had a voice. They were silent and internal, where only she could register them. This whole situation she had put herself in was nothing like she had ever done before. She was letting Stacie see her vulnerable for the first time, but it didn't feel at all like she expected it to.

Her roommate sat patiently, waiting for Beca to break the silence. The calming circle motions she was rubbing on her knee weren't too overbearing, but most importantly, she didn't push or try to finish Beca's sentences when she paused to compose herself. Once Stacie was filled in, she cried again and then she cried some more, without the feeling of embarrassment she was use to. Despite the crimpling pain in her chest where she was pretty sure her heart had literally shattered inside her; it felt nice – just to let it all out.

"What now?"

That was the first question Stacie had asked about the entire recount of events. Besides the first initial questions of Beca's wellbeing, now a nod wound no longer suffice as an answer. She sniffled and nervously crinkled the empty wrapper tightly gripped in her hand, eyes never meeting Stacie's.

"I guess I go to LA."

 **XXX**


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter Twelve

 **A/N 1: My last update didn't really answer any questions regarding Chloe's situation, but I felt combining these two chapters just didn't flow as well as they do on their own. I've already strung you guys along enough with the constant mystery, so...**

 **It might also have something to do with the fact that I wrote this chapter in the notes of my phone whilst on my break at work, because sometimes inspiration randomly blossoms. My thumbs did a serious work out and now I'm pretty sure they have guns...**

 **A/N 2: Another reason for the early post was due to reading your reviews. I read them and did some strange (mwahaha) evil laughing shit. That was mean. I'm sorry. Here, read my update...**

 **XXX**

 _Chloe forgot what she came home for._

 _It's funny how things go sometimes._

 _A reference contact – that was it._

 _She came home for the slip of paper in her bedside draw with the contact number of an old professor at college._

 _She most definitely did not come home to find her boyfriend in their bed with someone else._

 _But it's funny how things go, right?_

 _Chloe stood in the doorway, completely still and unable to speak._ _ **This actually explains a lot recently.**_ _Her throat was growing tight, her vision blurred by the tears filling the rims of her eyes._

 _Tom; nor the blonde straddling him; had noticed the new-comer in the room yet and Chloe really wanted to say something; a sentence; a word, at least just something - to scream at the top of her lungs or race over to the bed and pull them apart._

 _Instead, Chloe was temporarily paralysed, standing still in a daze of equal confusion and complete clarity._

 _She edged slightly towards the door, taking short and quiet steps to avoid detection._

 _ **I need to get out of this room.**_

 _The third step was surer and confident, which was probably why she misjudged the distance between her foot and the door, now slamming loudly against the wall behind it._

 _That was when they stopped._

 _Two pairs of eyes staring widely at her – that's when the tears fell. Chloe could have heard a gasp, but she couldn't be sure, as there was a strange ringing occurring inside her head._

 _The woman was on her feet, clothes tucked under her arm, pushing a broken Chloe against the door as she rushed her way out of the apartment._

 _There was a slam of the door – she was sure of that, because it silenced the ringing._

 _Then there was Tom; on his feet and suddenly standing right in front of Chloe. His mouth was moving, but she was paying it no attention. The hands that were just raking the naked lower back of another woman were finding their way onto the redhead's forearms._

 _She felt sick; physically sick. Tom's gentle shaking brought her out of her head and she instantly pulled away. She needed to put as much distance between them as possible right now, or else she was going to vomit._

" _I didn't mean for you to find out."_

 _He repeated those meaningless and hurtful words over and over again as he too began to cry. Albeit, probably not as much as Chloe was right now, but his tears were genuine._

 _Tom must have thought the silence was permission to step closer._

 _ **It wasn't.**_

 _She roughly pushed his chest; catching him off-guard; he fell onto the messy (dirty) bed sheets. Chloe quickly walked to her nightstand, retrieving the desired item she came home for and then continued to walk out of the bedroom._

 _Down the hall._

 _Through the living room._

 _Out the front door._

 _All the while repeating the same reoccurring thought:_

 _Fuck you, Tom. Fuck you._

 **XXX**

 _Chloe wasn't really sure where she was running to. Her steady, but speedy exit of the apartment had quickly developed into a sprint once she was on the steps._

 _She was suddenly hyper-aware of the pedestrians surrounding her on the sidewalk now; her distressed and upset appearance attracting attention._

 _That was something she didn't want or need right now, so she swerved into an alleyway, out of sight from the crowded traffic of the city._

 _She leaned heavily against a dumpster, turning her back on the street, as her knees gave out and her body slowly slipped down it, landing on the hard concrete in a defeated heap; the tears refusing to stop._

 _Their relationship had been strained ever since Tom walked out during dinner almost two months ago. Both of them completely stopped trying and oppose to the last time, the rut they found themselves in now was much more damaging than before._

 _Tom worked and partied._

 _Chloe did the same, but unlike him, she returned home to sleep in their bed every night._

 _So, OK, maybe she had her suspicions and perhaps what she had just walked in on wasn't a complete shock, but whenever the thought presented itself; late at night, in bed, alone; she pushed it away because of what it meant._

 _Thinking and registering the thought of Tom being unfaithful would cause Chloe to become curious, which would lead to a conversation with Tom about it; the outcome of said conversation would decide the future of their relationship and she wasn't ready for that – so she just never thought about it._

 _ **Well today was definitely not the day I imagined having.**_

 _Receiving her first job offer this morning was surprising._

 _Receiving another one an hour after the first was completely unexpected to say the least._

 _For the first time in months, not only was Chloe the first choice for a TA position at one school, but two._

 _That's why she needed the reference, the same reference that was crumpled and creased in the front of her jeans pocket._

 _Chloe was on a high at least less than twenty minutes ago, now she felt at rock bottom (quite literally) contemplating her relationship; her first love; her Tom. Ultimately Chloe had come to terms with what she had to do when she stumbled into their bedroom earlier. The previous clarity was resurfacing and spreading its way through her body; loosening her limbs and realising the tensions:_

 _ **Tom changed, and he's not who he use to be. Time to move on, Chlo.**_

 _She gently rested her head against the dumpster and looked up at the patch of sky visible in between the tall buildings. It was bluer than she'd ever seen it and took it as a sign._

 _A deep breath and the blow of her nose later, she reached into her pocket retrieving her phone and the paper. She scrolled through her recent calls and tapped on the most recent number. There was a dial tone and the echo of her wavering breath in the receiver and then a voice answered._

" _Hi, this is Chloe Beale calling about the Teaching Assistant position you offered me earlier. I have the contact details for the reference you requested and if everything still stands, I'd like to take the job."_

 **XXX**

 _When she returned to the apartment she found Tom pacing the kitchen. He stilled when she walked through the door, before continue the length of the counter. After her phone call with the school, she made her way back to the coffee shop; judging by the several missed calls from Fat Amy she had taken a longer break than she should have._

 _Upon entering the store, Fat Amy could tell something was off. From the moment she was asked "Are you OK?" Chloe returned back to the blubbering mess she was forty minutes ago; despite her desperate attempt to keep herself contained; she crumbled under Fat Amy's gaze._

 _Chloe didn't even need to tell her what was wrong; she already knew. Although the redhead had tried to keep the doubts to herself, Fat Amy could see her friend grappling with it, but she never mentioned it, instead she just swore she's be there for her best friend when the inevitable happened._

" _Hey new girl, watch the store!" Fat Amy instructed and pulled Chloe down the stairwell behind the counter and into the store room. Once they were alone, Chloe let out a deep breath and simply stated "I'm not going to cry anymore."_

 _A quick explanation and restraining the Australian from acted on her threat "pulling his teeth out one by one and then feeding them to that home wrecking bitch" – Fat Amy's words, not hers – she was back to work and trying to look to the future._

 _The dip on the sofa cushion next to her brought Chloe out of her thoughts. Tom was about to rest his hand on her knee when she spoke._

" _Don't. You don't get to do that anymore." she whispered, moving away from his touch._

 _Tom didn't reply. He just sat in silence, looking at her knee._

" _How long?"_

 _It was a simple question used for many different things. How long to cook it for? How long is the film? How long have you been fucking someone else? - Tom's lack of a reaction made Chloe feel like she wasn't asking their relationship-breaking question._

 _Then he shrugged "Two months, maybe less."_

" _Less by a couple of days, weeks? How fucking long?" Although her voice was even, she was beginning to lose the calmness she had previously promised herself, but Chloe had never thought about the possibility of Tom having a relationship behind her back, surely it was purely physical..._

" _What does it matter?" he muttered._

 _Chloe said she wouldn't cry anymore. Both of them had changed since moving to New York and both of them had given up trying. They each had a part in this - to some extent – and they could at least deal with this like adults._

 _But his response was so out of character and so nonchalant; she could feel the anger rising._

" _What does it matter? What does it matter?" she repeatedly yelled. She lunged forward and turned to face him, throwing her body back down on the couch roughly._

" _Does almost three years of our lives together not matter, Tom? Of course it matters._ _ **You've**_ _been cheating on_ _ **me**_ _" she emphasised her point by jabbing her finger at his arm roughly "and I really don't think I'm asking for too much when I want to know exactly how long for."_

" _I can't talk to you when you're like this. You!" he jabbed a finger back at her arm with the same force "You like this, is the exact reason I have Laura" he shouted back. Her eyes were growing glassy by the second now, Tom had feelings for this 'Laura', she could tell and it really fucking hurt._

 _She gently ran her fingers under her eyes, and looked up at the ceiling, not granting her tears permission to fall._

" _Laura? It wasn't just sex with her, was it?" her voice was barely a whisper, scared that if she spoke them loud enough, Tom would answer._

 _He stood up, and began pacing again._

" _Chlo, we weren't working. We just aren't meant to be, surely you knew this a long time ago?" he asked, wildly waving his hands around, asking like it was the most simple thing in the world._

 _Chloe laughed. It wasn't a snigger, nor was it a sarcastic chuckle, but a roaring gut-busting, belly laugh. He looked at her confused, as she leaned back, resting her head on the couch cushion._

" _Yeah and what if I did? Was I supposed to go out and find someone like fucking Laura? Was I suppose to cheat on you too, Tom? Just climb into bed with anyone that would have me, just because we "weren't working"? We had a serious relationship, live together! I love you, Tom. I have since the moment we met in college? Are you really that stupid?"_

 _The words kept coming and they didn't seem to be stopping. The previous hysterical laughter from before was lost halfway through her sentence, the tears had fallen at some point and she'd sobbed her way through the last line, her voice taking the tone of a plea._

 _He sat back down next to her, taking her hands in his – Chloe let him. "Our relationship meant everything to me. I fell for you as hard as you fell for me, Chlo, you know that."_

 _He offered her a soft smile. Chloe seemed to gain a sixth sense for Tom over the years, and right now he was pulling the same expression he would before giving a heartfelt apology._

" _I'm sorry."_

 _There it was. Did he really think he was getting out of this that easily; a smile, some hand holding and a sprinkle of bullshit? She opened her mouth to speak, but Tom continued._

" _I don't love you anymore. I haven't for a while. Laura and I have something and it's something I never felt with you. I never wanted you to find out like you did, but I'm glad it happened, because now we can finally be honest with each other."_

 _Scratch that, she no longer possessed the sixth sense._

 _Chloe sat there in shock; in fact more shocked than earlier this afternoon. She was unable to form words, again. The redhead quickly pulled her hands from his, and Tom began using his finger to gesture between them._

" _I don't want this anymore; I haven't for a while. For a long time, I thought you were it for me; you know 'the one'? But I was wrong, you're not."_

 _It was then Chloe broke her promise; she cried, but not before striking Tom's cheek with her hand, hard._

 _Then he left._

 _And Chloe's heart was broken._

 **XXX**


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: You guys really wanted an update. Some of you will be glad to know I have heart (Aetherion13, you're reviews are spot on! :D) so I have two chapters in one update.**

 **Massive shout out to the regular reviewers (until its gone/chaffad/ Llvr/ sugarlandaddict23/ Cecilla Dale ... just to name a few) thank you so much for your kind words and loyal follow, like fo'serious (that's not a word I use often, I swear...) CHEERS!**

 **Well, I'll let you get to it...**

 **XXX**

Chapter Thirteen

Beca could feel the sun on her face, and she internally berated herself for not packing sun screen. _Who in their right mind goes to LA knowing full well they have fair skin?_ She pushed her sunglasses onto the top of her head, as she looked down at the phone vibrating on the table.

Chloe, again – she silenced the device and continued to ignore it, tuning her attention back to the laptop in front of her. Chloe had been calling incessantly since yesterday morning, and honestly Beca was growing tired of it. How could she possibly think it was OK to call after she'd lied since the moment they met?

If it wasn't such a quick and last minute trip, she would have turned the phone off, but Beca was still waiting on a few calls and deep _, deep_ down, she wanted to see how many times the redhead would try to get in contact. Although it was messed up, Beca was using it as a scale, measuring how much she meant (if she meant anything at all) to the other woman by how often and how much Chloe called. What? She said it was messed up...

So far, thirty-four missed calls, twelve unheard voicemails and three pathetic text messages begging they speak on the phone or in person, because "saying things through text message wasn't right" – apparently. Beca laughed when she read that, it was as if Chloe thought she still had ethics.

The memories and images of yesterday were resurfacing, so she turned the volume up in her headphones in order to distract her mind from wondering back down that path again.

She was just saving some work on a new mix when her phone came back to life, but this time it was someone she actually wanted to talk to, so she swiftly swiped answer and placed it to her ear.

"Beca Mitchell"

 **XXX**

Stacie had booked the week off work, and she planned spending that time camped out on the couch, binge watching Netflix and only eating breakfast cereal and pizza. Not only had she took the holiday for her birthday, but work at the office had been hectic recently, so it felt good to finally have some time to herself.

Initial plans were suppose to be spent with Beca celebrating her Birthday for the entire week. Stacie had realised Beca would cater to Stacie's every want and need with the quick utter of the words "But, Becs, it's my Birthday". It didn't matter if it was the week before, Beca caved and did as she was told; the taller woman was going to abuse that power for at least another week. Well, that was until Beca decided to fly to LA.

But, hey, Netflix and the couch were going to have to do, it's not every day your best friend gets flown to Los Angeles to sign a contract for her new swanky promotion and all her dreams come true. Stacie had mixed feelings about it all. Despite wanting Beca to have her dream job, she feared the sudden change of heart so soon after yesterday was Beca's way of running away from her problems. The DJ wasn't backing down, so instead of arguing her point, Stacie accompanied her to the airport and waved her off with a smile.

It was quite clear Beca was still upset, but since yesterday morning she hadn't showed Stacie any emotion on the matter. Staying in her room and playing loud music with the occasional bathroom break. Stacie joked on a regular basis that living with Beca was like living with a moody teenager; that would have been a very accurate description on Sunday evening, if it wasn't for Stacie hearing Beca's sobs n between the changing of songs. The brunette never knocked – she knew Beca wanted to be alone and she respected that.

Stacie was settled into the corner of the sofa, wrapped in a blanket, making a huge dent into the third season Breaking Bad when there was a pounding on the door causing her to spill the contents of her cereal down her front.

"Shit!"

She let out a sigh and collected the majority of the mess that had spilled onto the blanket and rolled it up, placing it on the coffee table. Two feet were angrily stomped onto the hardwood flooring, just before she plodded to the door and swung it open.

"This better be worth my spilt-"

She stopped.

It wasn't that Stacie hadn't expected her; she just thought that since Chloe was a no-show yesterday, she wouldn't bother coming here at all. The redhead looked awful, which kind of made Stacie feel better. Her clothes were creased, hair tied up in a messy ponytail, and her face free of make-up. She had been crying; probably more than Beca; her eyes red and her face puffy.

"Is Beca here?"

Chloe's voice was soft, but gravelly and hoarse. She almost looked defeated, like she already knew the answer to her own question and it wasn't good. Stacie had tried to talk Beca into telling Chloe she was leaving town for a while, but the brunette flatly refused, so once again, Stacie didn't push. She just gave her a quick hug and told her to have a safe flight whilst a constant stream of commuters passed them by in the airport.

"She got a promotion in LA, she left yesterday afternoon." Stacie said, as she began shutting the door.

That wasn't a lie – Beca _did_ get a promotion and she _is_ in LA right now. Her statement was the truth, but she can understand how it could be perceived. More 'Beca has moved to LA for her promotion' and less 'Beca is reading and signing her contract for her promotion and then returning back to New York'.

A foot was stopping the door from closing, and Stacie could tell by the other woman's expression how she'd interpreted the last statement.

"She's coming back right?" Chloe's voice was laced with desperation, fear and confusion, as she looked at Stacie expectedly. The taller woman simply shrugged and glared at Chloe's foot that was wedged in between the gap of the door and its frame.

"Look, Chloe, Beca isn't here right now. If you really want to speak to her, why don't you just call her? Now if you wouldn't mind" she pointed back down to the shoe obstructing the door "I have stuff to do."

That was when the redhead's expression changed. Her eyes seemed to have a look of determination that wasn't there before. Even her stance had changed; slouched shoulders were now lifted and her back straight. Then arms were on the door and Stacie was being pushed backwards.

"Look, Stacie" Chloe spoke louder now, making her way into the apartment, "Beca won't answer my calls. Whatever she told you, it-I-she- it just wasn't what it looked like, OK? So, please, I'm begging you, can you just be honest with me right now, tell me she's coming back? If not I'll book a flight right now..." she waved her phone in her hand, still in the same blue case from the store her and Beca first met "...and you can tell me where she's staying. I need to fix this. I can't let her go."

It took Stacie a while to react. Firstly, she wasn't expecting the shorter woman to push the door open with such force, but the words leaving her mouth right now seemed sincere and Stacie could tell she meant them. Damn, now Beca knows what she meant a couple of weeks ago when she told her Chloe was hot when she got angry.

 _Wait, what? Stacie, focus!_

"If Beca isn't answering your calls, she obviously doesn't want to talk to you. I can't go behind Beca's back like that, she's my best friend. But I will tell you that she's coming back on Wednesday."

Chloe seemed to perk up a little at that piece of information, and began walking closer to Stacie.

"But..." The redhead's shoulder's visibly lowered at the sound of that.

"She's out there signing a contract to work in LA. So when she comes back, it won't be for long" she finished.

Chloe deflated, her demeanour returning to how it was the moment she arrived.

"What?" her voice cracked and she was wiping away some rogue tears.

"Beca made it very clear she didn't want me getting involved, so I'm trying my best to honour that right now, but you have a boyfriend, Chloe. You fucked up. Beca was an emotional wreck when she came back yesterday. You broke her heart. So, Beca does what she does best; she runs, this time to the other side of the country. Just give her some space."

Although Stacie hated Chloe for what she had done to her best friend, it was really difficult to remain indifferent when someone was emotionally falling apart in front of her. Chloe attempted to take a deep breath, but instead it just came out as a strangled sob.

"He's not my boyfriend." she spoke, her voice shaky.

"If you're in a towel and a guy is in his pants, whether he's your boyfriend or not, it's pretty obvious what you'd been doing" she stated coldly, all the sympathy she felt for the redhead wiped away with her reply.

"I forgot my shampoo."

That excuse was laughable, even she knew it. Chloe could sense that stupid paralysis she tends to feel when she's too upset about to take over. If she can't even explain the situation to Stacie how they hell was she expected to explain it to Beca - if she got the chance to explain it to her at all. That thought alone made her cry more.

Stacie had turned her nose up now, staring the redhead down with a look of disgust.

 **XXX**

Stacie had literally laughed her out of the apartment and slammed the door in her face. Chloe spent thirty-five minutes just sitting in the corridor, crying and staring at the gold numbers on the door. The redhead dragged her eyes over its outline, rounding the curves and corners of '6B' in an attempt to distract her from the crushing feeling that was currently occurring in her chest.

Once she was sure Stacie wasn't going to take pity on her and open up any time soon, she pulled herself up and got a cab home.

She was more than relieved to find out Tom and Laura weren't home when she threw herself down on the couch defeated and heartbroken; the feeling very similar to how she felt six months ago in this exact spot when Tom walked out.

Ever since then, Tom and Chloe had a completely different relationship to the one they had before. Granted, they broke up on bad terms, but they didn't even speak to each other anymore. Matter of fact, the morning Beca knocked on their apartment door was the most words Tom and Chloe had ever exchanged since they were dating. It was an impulsive decision when she hugged him once she stepped out of the bathroom and also a mistake. She so desperately craved some form of comfort, but seeking it from Tom was wrong. She quickly pulled away, feeling regretful and uncomfortable; Tom even had the audacity to remind her he had Laura – _like she ever forgot._

She reached into her coat pocket for her phone, checking to see if she had heard anything back from Beca for what felt like the millionth time today. But like the many times before; nothing. She slowly ran her finger over her home screen; a picture of her and Beca from Stacie's party at the weekend. Beca was unaware of the camera and whispering some form of obscenities into her ear when Chloe snapped the photo. Her words were slurred and jumbled as Beca tried to be sexy and seductive; making Chloe burst into fits of laughter when the photo was taken. The DJ was smiling, caught in the picture just before she buried her head into the redhead's shoulder and started to do the same.

She smiled fondly at the memory, before taking a deep breath and curling up into a ball on the sofa, hugging the phone to her chest. She wiped her nose with the back of a hand and unlocked the device. If Beca wasn't answering her calls, she probably hadn't listened to any of her voicemails either, so she just bit the bullet.

Tapping Beca's thread in her messages, her thumbs began frantically tapping on the screen. _Hopefully she'll read the previews._ Chloe can only hope, because she's not sure she can go through another day feeling like this.

 **XXX**

Beca stormed out of the studio without as much as a wave at the receptionist in the lobby when she bid her a good-bye. She hoisted her laptop bag further up on her shoulder and continued speed walking as far away from the studio as possible.

 _This is bullshit. My boss is a dick._

Turns out the promised promotion Beca was 'hand-picked' for was total garbage and wasn't even worthy of the word 'promotion' - just basically a re-location, making her financially worse off.

"What the fuck?" she said under her breath, deeply exhaling from her nose, "What a complete fucking joke!" Beca said louder this time, gaining some funny looks from pass-bys on the boardwalk now. When she first made her way to the studio she admired the view. Even let herself imagine how nice it would be to pass the beach on her way to work every day, or eat her lunch on the boardwalk.

Eventually she found a vacant bench and flung her bag onto it, throwing herself down. Yesterday when she had rang her boss confirming she wanted to take the job after all, he never once fully informed her of the terms and conditions. It cost a completely wasted trip across the country to find out herself the whole thing was pointless.

"What the fuck?" she repeated again, slightly louder.

A mother and child eating ice cream walked passed her the moment the curse word left her lips, the woman shooting her a dirty look, "What's your problem lady?" she yelled as they rushed away.

 _Shit._

"Hey, I'm sorry" she shouted after them.

Turns out the promotion was basically just being an intern for the company again, making coffee and picking up Subway orders in Los Angeles, but with a trail period of six months. If her performance was good enough, she'd be hired and work full time still making the coffee runs. That's not even the worst part; she would be working for free for the first year. How they expected her to afford to live in LA for a year with a full time unpaid job was beyond her. _What the fuck?_

The anger was boiling inside her now, so she reached into her bag pulling out her phone. A quick calming talk with Stacie would probably stop her from swearing in front of little kids and yelling at parents.

Beca pressed the power button, and stared at the screen impatiently. Once it had booted up, she unlocked it, tapping on her contacts, until a stream of text messages came through. The preview occurring one by one on the screen; the name instantly grabbing her attention and causing her throat to dry.

 **CHLOE [5:07PM]: I know you don't want to talk to me and you're upset right now, but I need to explain what you think you saw – You've given me no choice but to explain via text which I didn't want to do.**

 **CHLOE [5:07PM]: Tom and I use to date; I can be honest with you about that. We broke up six months ago and I never moved out due to certain stuff which I can explain if you ask me. But the whole thing you think you saw was down to really bad timing, I swear. I was about to have a shower and Tom had just said good-bye to his girlfriend; that's why it looked the way it did.**

 **CHLOE [5:09PM]: I'm sorry about everything, I really am! I need you to talk to me, Beca. If you don't, I'll get on a plane to LA, whatever. I'll do anything to fix this. I haven't felt this strongly about anyone. You're special to me, Becs and I think I'm falling for you. PLEASE, call me or text, I need to speak to you x**

Beca forget why she had even turned on her phone, or why she was feeling angry less than ten seconds ago. Right now her sole attention was on those three text messages, reading them over and over, in case she missed something after the fourth read.

A droplet fell onto the screen. At first she thought it was rain, completely unaware of the tears she'd been biting back for the duration of the day, finally breaking free. Beca stopped fighting them. Her mind was running a mile a minute right now, thoughts flying around too fast that she was unable to grab one and individually analyse it.

 _How did she know I'm in LA?_

She pushed that question to the back of her mind, focussing more on the other woman's explanation. As far as Beca can tell, it could still be a lie, but she does remember crossing paths with a blonde woman on the stairwell before she knocked on Chloe's apartment door.

So Chloe wasn't lying from the beginning; granted she wasn't one hundred percent honest, but she wasn't seeing anyone else from the moment they met. A weight seemed to lift from her chest, her shoulders felt lighter, and her expression seemed to lift. The frown etched into her features was straightening slightly, but the tears were still falling; she wiped them away and then rubbed the screen of her phone on her knee. She re-read the messages again.

 _Chloe was falling for her?_

She locked the phone and threw it back in her bag. She looked out onto the horizon, nervously rubbing her hands on her pants. She tried to clear her mind, and figure out what to do. If Chloe was falling for her then she must be hurting just as much as Beca. There was a slight tug in her chest, as she pictured the other woman upset. Even in this fucked up situation, she was still worried about the redhead and cared about her wellbeing.

 _What does that mean?_

She stood up and grabbed her laptop bag, taking one last look at the beach in front of her; she turned around, heading straight for her motel down the street. She was going back to New York, right now.

 **XXX**

 **BECA [23:17PM]: I'm on my way back to my apartment. We need to talk.**

 **XXX**


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter Fourteen

Beca was perched at the end of her bed at first, but then she moved to the window seat in the living room, watching the street below. Looking at a constant empty sidewalk in the dark made her agitated, so she moved to the stool by the breakfast bar. She twiddled her thumbs and looked around the room, spotting little cracks in the walls she'd never noticed before. Then she started pulling at the loose thread on her sleeve, and focused her attention on the Polaroid photos Stacie sticks on the door of the fridge. That was when she got up and made a drink; a shot of whiskey seemed appropriate right now.

She set the empty glass down on the side and made her way to sit on the couch, constantly crossing and uncrossing her legs, contemplating another shot. Her thoughts were silenced, as she heard the knock on the door she'd been nervously anticipating.

 _Fuck. Answer the door? Shout "come in"? Ignore it? Turn all the lights off, hide down the hallway and hope the person on the other side eventually goes away? Fuck! Get a grip Mitchell._

Beca slowly walked to the door, taking a deep breath before turning the lock. She knew she had to do this, she _wanted_ to do this. _Fuck._

Chloe stood hesitantly in the hall, not sure what to do next. Ever since reading Beca's text message, she'd been on edge to say the least. Her reply had been typed, deleted, re-typed to then be deleted, re-typed and deleted again – she really didn't want to push her luck.

From the moment her phone chimed, she'd had this feeling in the pit of her stomach she couldn't get rid of. At first it was unsettling; even though Beca was willing to hear her explanation, there was doubt she couldn't shake. The silence had been unbearable these past two days, but finally getting to speak to the DJ meant one of two things – Beca doesn't like what she has to say and then that's it forever. In fact that was the only one thing Chloe had thought about from the moment she read the message...

At least when they weren't communicating Chloe could still hope; a conversation would lead to the next step and she honestly wasn't sure what that step was or what it would mean.

She couldn't lose Beca, not tonight, not ever – she was going to fix this. Chloe was going to make things right between them. Beg, grovel, shout, scream, cry, plea, protest, whatever it took. She was going to do that tonight.

But as soon as she was stood in the door way and greeted by Beca, all of her previous plans went out of the window. Her legs felt like jelly, suddenly unsure of everything and out of touch with the positive thoughts she'd been thinking on her way over. _Fuck._

"I don't think we should have this conversation on my door step" Beca muttered stepping aside, gesturing the redhead to come in. These past couple of weeks, Beca had seen Chloe in different ways. The 'sleepy, make-up free' Chloe that would smile and snuggle into her shoulder; the 'dressed to the nines' Chloe on her arm when they went out for the night; the 'run-down, sweat pants on, hair tied up' Chloe after a hectic day of work curled up into her side watching a movie Beca had been forced to watch.

But this Chloe in front of her right now was new. She looked tired and helpless. Her nose was red and her under eyes puffy. Chloe was upset, that was clear to see, but there was something in her eyes she'd never seen before; _**worry.**_ Beca couldn't recall one single moment she'd seen Chloe worried.

The taller woman didn't speak; she simply faked a smile and slowly walked through the door. They stood in silence for a while. The atmosphere around them felt foreign; it was strained and awkward and Beca wasn't sure how to ease it, usually Chloe was the one to do that, but she could already tell that this Chloe in front of her wasn't going to be the one to do it this time. So for once, Beca took the lead.

"Do you want a drink? I would strongly recommend a shot of whiskey, it did absolute nothing to calm my nerves five minutes ago" she deadpanned and although her smirk wasn't as visible as it usually was after an attempt at a joke, Chloe noticed it. Surely Beca trying to put her at ease was a good sign, right?

She smiled a soft smile and shook her head.

"I think we should probably just talk?" Chloe asked her voice quiet and unsure.

Beca nodded.

 **XXX**

Beca had done some serious thinking on her flight from LA. Five hours stranded thousands of feet in the air was actually the perfect setting - no distractions. She was seated on the row of three seats in the centre of the plane and simply put on her headphones and got lost in her thoughts.

If Beca was being honest with herself, for the past two days she had done everything in her power to prevent herself from doing just that. Once she had saw Chloe in her apartment on Sunday morning, she had willed every fibre in her body to never think about the redhead again. Despite such the short time of knowing each other, she had surrendered her heart to Chloe, and that was something she didn't do often; or, well, ever. The other woman knew that and was aware how sensitive Beca was; even if she tried not to show it; and she was still careless enough to hold it in her hands and break it, like it meant nothing.

This was around the time Beca was thankful she was the only one occupying her row of seats, because the tears made another unwanted appearance. But Chloe owed her an explanation and Beca desperately wanted one. Even if Chloe's words weren't the ones Beca wanted to hear, she still had to listen, **because** she handed her heart over so quickly.

So, that's what the DJ was going to do.

Hear Chloe out.

Right now; at least to Beca; things seem unfixable. The trust has been broken and what they had, or could have had after Saturday evening was lost, but Chloe said she'd do "anything to fix it" and Chloe doesn't say things she doesn't mean. Well, at least she didn't think she did.

If Chloe wanted to fix this as much as she says she does, then maybe Beca should be a little more willing. After all, her feelings were very intense for their two week not-even-a-relationship-yet relationship; could she just throw that away?

No.

Beca wasn't ready to do that yet. She needed to know why there was a man in the redhead's apartment. _A man who was her ex-boyfriend? Why the hell was Chloe even living with her ex-boyfriend? For_ _ **six**_ _fucking months?!_

The thought was like a constant itch she couldn't reach, so she did the only thing she could do to scratch it. As soon as she landed in New York, she pulled out her phone and texted the only person that could answer her pressing questions. She typed out a quick message and tapped Chloe's name in her contacts.

She needed answers and as soon as possible.

 **XXX**

"So, where should we start? Before or after you slept with your ex-boyfriend?" Beca couldn't help it; the words were on the tip of her tongue and fought their way out of her lips.

Chloe literally coward into the corner of the couch and Beca felt an immediate pang of guilt, although the other woman looked away, she heard the quiet sniffle and then saw the hand that was quickly brought up to wipe her face.

Even though Beca knew she had the right to give her anger a voice, she couldn't help but lean across the sofa and reach for Chloe's hand.

"I'm sorry" she whispered, "I didn't m-I shouldn't have said that."

Chloe backed away from the brunette, pulling her hand from Beca's, "No, you have every right to be angry. I can't let myself allow you to comfort me right now..." she gestured at the hand Beca had just placed over hers, "I don't deserve it."

Beca doesn't want to admit it, but her heart broke hearing Chloe say that. If Chloe's frail appearance at the door didn't do it first, that statement gave Beca an insight to how the redhead had been copping; or lack of; over the past two days.

Beca couldn't hold it in anymore, the unknown was agony.

"Why was Tom at your apartment if you broke up six months ago?" she rushed out, frantically searching the other woman's expression for, well, anything.

Chloe let out a ragged breath before turning to face Beca, painfully aware of keeping a healthy distance between them.

"Tom and I broke up six months ago when I caught him cheating on me. We had been dating since college and moved out here together from Atlanta."

She paused for a second or two before continuing.

"When we signed the lease on the apartment we equally split the cost between us. Once we broke up, I started staying on Fat Amy's sofa; I was so heartbroken I couldn't go back there, I just couldn't face him after what he did."

"But when I went to collect the rest of my things a week or two after, imagine my shock when I found out he'd moved the girl he was cheating on me with into our apartment. Her clothes were in the half of my closet, pictures of Tom and I had been taken down, he'd even gotten her a key cut for the front door."

Chloe scoffed at her last sentence; she could feel the anger resurfacing. For weeks she had cried herself to sleep over the way it ended so brutally between them and _that prick_ had been fine! There wasn't a moment in the day she forgot about her heartbreak and Tom was currently taking all possible actions to cut Chloe out of his life and replace her with this Laura woman.

That's what hurt the most; the way he just shrugged her off, like she never meant anything to him in the first place. College Tom couldn't have done this to her, so coldly and without even so much as a consideration for her feelings. This new Tom was heartless. Once Chloe had come to that realisation she didn't cry anymore, the anger replaced the hurt, and she decided in that moment she wasn't going to stand for this.

"So I got the boxes he'd packed all my things in and I put them in the spare bedroom. I paid for half of that apartment; spent so much time making it my home; there was no way I was letting Tom brush me off like I was just some sort of inconvenience. So I stayed and I've been staying, until the lease is up, because I refuse to me made a fool of by someone like that."

Beca heard the hurt in Chloe's voice when she first spoke; quiet and vulnerable, but the more she talked, the words were said louder and more confidently, the anger was there, but so was her defiance. Beca was torn between enveloping the redhead in a hug and running back to her apartment to kick the shit out of this Tom dude.

"The lease is up next week. I already have a place sorted, and the moment I moved in I planned on inviting you round. I just really wanted to keep all of those negative feelings and the bad atmosphere of that apartment away from our relationship, does that make any sense?"

"I guess it makes sense" Beca shrugged. "But you're saying you would have continued to keep me in the dark about your ex if I hadn't have showed up when I did?"

Beca thought that was a valid question; she'd told Chloe about her Mother's death and all the pain and heartbreak that followed it; she had told her things she's never said to anyone before and she had let Chloe comfort her when she almost broke down. But Chloe wasn't going to share her heartbreak and let Beca return the favour? Or did Chloe think she didn't deserve to know that about her? The doubt was finding its way back to Beca's subconscious. Whatever Chloe was about to say needed to be good; it needed to make these feelings go away.

"No, of course not, Beca. I meant it when I said I'm falling for you, what we have-or had was something I'd never felt before, the feelings were stronger and so much more intense than I've ever felt and I was scared that telling you everything would scare you away. I know now, I should have been completely upfront with you, but I just didn't want to lose you."

That was when the tears started. Her voice cracked and the tears blurring her vision finally made good on their threat of falling free. She had desperately tried to hold them back, but the look of doubt in Beca's eyes was enough to make her crumble.

Beca let out the breath she had been holding; once again Chloe had effortlessly said the right thing to put her mind at ease; even in their current messed-up situation, she still had the ability to give her the reassurance she so desperately required. The DJ placed her hand back atop of Chloe's, but this time the older woman didn't turn away.

"OK, that is for our second half of this conversation. I just need to know why you were..." she couldn't quite bring herself to finish the sentence. It seemed impossible to simply state or power-phrase the root of all of her hurt.

Luckily, Chloe did it for her.

"Why I was almost naked and Tom was just wearing his pants?" she asked shyly.

Beca felt her breath catch in her throat; her eyes were getting damp, in order to disguise the hurt, she covered it up with a chuckle. "Yeah, that."

"I know it sounds like bullshit; it's pathetic."

Beca quickly glanced at the watery blue eyes looking into hers before they were quickly averted to the ground. Chloe's worry had returned.

The shorter woman scooted over a little closer and brushed a finger over her knuckles – an attempt at reassurance.

There was another beat of silence, before Chloe spoke again.

"I forgot my shampoo" she shrugged, letting out a bitter laugh. "Like I said, it sounds like some bullshit excuse, but I swear, I was just about to get in the shower when I remembered I'd left a new bottle of shampoo on the counter when unpacking the groceries. Tom was saying good-bye to Laura and then you knocked and he opened the door and you- it looked like something that it wasn't. I would give anything to go back and change things. Like remember my fucking shampoo before I stepped in the shower."

It all came out rushed and unpunctuated and ended in a blubbering mess, as Chloe completely broke down. The cries and sobs no longer in her control, mentally berating herself for nth time about the events of Sunday morning.

Beca couldn't help it; she pulled Chloe into her chest, wrapping her arms tightly around her. She knows she suppose to be mad. She should need some space in order to find it within herself to forgive her, but she can't stand to see Chloe so upset and broken without comforting her. Beca knows she's more than sorry about how things turned out and Beca almost believes her. She's so close to the cusp of forgiveness that it frightens her.

She pushed the thought out of her mind and pulled Chloe even closer. Holding her seemed to numb her mind and she hadn't realised how much she'd missed this. Just having Chloe in her space was enough to make everything feel at least a little better. Beca absent-mindly placed a kiss to the redhead's temple and revelled in the way she felt Chloe finally relax into her.

There was still one piece of information that she needed to know. Something else that had constantly ran through her mind on the flight home.

"Chlo?" her voice muffled by strands of red hair.

Chloe sat up, leaning away from Beca, so she was able to look her in the eye. An involuntary shiver ran through her body, reacting to the lack of the other woman's body heat.

"What colour hair does Tom's girlfriend have?"

Beca's question caught her off-guard and she was unable to hide the confused expression on her face. She narrowed her eyes slightly, and nervously chewed at her bottom lip.

"What does that-"

"Chloe, just answer the question" Beca said firmly.

"Blonde" she replied bewildered.

 _I passed her, on the damn stairs._

The sudden drop of Beca's shoulders and her long sigh didn't go unnoticed and Chloe had no idea what her question or reaction meant. The same panic and fear she felt upon reading Beca's previous text message was back. The hope that was slowly increasing as their conversation continued was completely shot down.

Beca finally spoke.

"I believe you" she smiled.

 **XXX**

Beca lay in bed, wide awake. She had been staring at the same spot on the ceiling for the past two hours, unable to silent the thoughts in her mind. The conversation with Chloe had gone better than she had expected; her questions were answers and she felt one hundred percent sure Chloe was being honest throughout.

And that's what made it more difficult.

Her plan was simple; sit down, listen, and send Chloe on her way.

Tonight, she had given well on the first two, but as for the last one; well... who sticks to plans anyway?

By the time they had finished talking, it was already way past midnight, so Beca brought a blanket and a pair of pillows to the couch for Chloe to sleep on. Despite the talk going well, Beca had ended it telling Chloe she wasn't ready to forgive her just yet; she needed some time.

That was almost true. It wasn't a lie. She wanted time, but she didn't need it. Beca had forgiven Chloe as soon as their conversation was over, and that's what was keeping her awake right now. Was it possible for all of the hurt and anger she felt less than four hours ago to just wash away so quickly?

 **XXX**

Beca turned onto her side; a poor attempt to shake the thoughts from her mind. But once facing the wall, she began to feel an overwhelming need to see the woman on the other side. Maybe Chloe was asleep, or perhaps she too was wide awake. She could have left, just sneaked out of the front door once Beca was in her room. She wanted so desperately to believe that in order to put her mind at ease, but truthfully she could feel Chloe's presence still in the apartment.

Staring at the wall seemed to be making things worse, so Beca sat up. She reached for the laptop on the floor next to her bed, when there was a sudden strip of light under her door. Beca froze, mid stretch, eyes glued to new light, straining her ears to hear any sort of movement. She knew it wasn't Stacie; her best friend had stated they both needed some time alone to figure things out; so it could only be one person.

She didn't hear the flick of the bathroom light, nor did she hear the hallway creak. After a few seconds of silence she waited to hear the inevitable flush of the toilet; but nothing. She contemplated getting up and investigating, but decided against it, settling back into her pillow without the laptop. Perhaps Chloe was getting a glass of water or something. Jeez, she was doing way too much assuming this evening.

She told herself one more glance at the door and she would turn onto her other side, until something was partially blocking the light underneath it. Beca's head whipped around to look at it square on, insurance that she wasn't imaging it.

She wasn't.

 **XXX**

Chloe had said everything she wanted to say to Beca tonight and it had felt good to get it all of her chest. She had had her doubts about their conversation before hand, but it went as well as it could consider their circumstances. Chloe still felt guilty; she was sure that feeling would take a while to fade; but the hope that was constantly increasing and decreasing since she saw Beca was back, and rising further now.

From the moment Beca told her she believed her, a huge sense of relief washed over her – Chloe hadn't prepared herself to hear those three words – and once she did, Chloe cried for another ten minutes into Beca's shoulder.

Once they had both admitted they wanted to work on their relationship, Chloe felt the stress of the past two days slowly fizzle away into a distant memory. Of course she knew they weren't just going to pick up where they left off; Chloe wasn't stupid; she had a lot of work to do – work she wouldn't shy away from – but it was a start.

Beca's last words were imprinted in her memory, causing her to toss and turn on Beca's couch.

"You hurt me, Chloe – I need time to forgive."

She would literally give Beca all the time in the world, she didn't mind the wait, she would wait for as long as it took, but there was something in the way Beca spoke the words; they seemed a little... off? The lingering touches when exchanging pillows and blankets, accompanied by a hesitant walk down the hallway didn't help either.

So, after two sleepless hours of contemplating, she boldly flicked the hallway light on, intending to knock on the brunette's door. She stood by the couch for a few minutes, rethinking. Was she really going to knock on Beca's door all based on a stupid hunch?

But she couldn't stand sleeping in the room next door right now; the short distance was too tempting. That's when she thought about leaving, changing back into her jeans, putting on her shoes and heading home. Surely doing that would make matters worse in the morning and leave a very bad impression.

So she started walking; slowly tip-toeing down the hall and pausing outside Beca's room, listening out for any signs to indicate she was asleep. Her arm was outstretched, ready to knock, but she paused, rethinking her actions, once again.

 **XXX**

Beca let a few seconds pass by, before quietly crawling to the end of her bed, her eyes never leaving the feet at the bottom of the door. Before she had too much time to over think things, she was on her feet and reaching for the door knob.

She had wanted to kiss Chloe good-night earlier, but she knew it was the wrong thing to. Quite frankly, the desire to kiss the redhead was probably the main reason for keeping her awake, but she wasn't ready to admit that to herself yet.

So that's probably why she opened the door, the light of the hallway pouring into her bedroom and illuminating the room. It took a second for her eyes to adjust to the brightness, but once they did she was met with the sight of Chloe in her oversized t-shirt and underwear. Yeah, that really wasn't helping her current battling desires...

She raked her eyes over the redhead's form, before meeting her gaze. Chloe gave a weary smile, as she opened her mouth to speak, but Beca didn't give her a chance to start, instead lunging forward and putting her mouth on Chloe's.

 **XXX**

Judging by Beca's lips on hers right now, Chloe was right when she thought there was something off with her earlier. She didn't really have time to form any other thoughts, as the familiarity of kissing Beca Mitchell engrossed her senses. God, she'd missed this...

Beca was pulling at her shirt and wrapping her fist into it, as she pulled the redhead closer and further into the room. Chloe's feet stumbled onto Beca's as they blindly made their way to the bed. The brunette softly pulled at the redhead's lip with her teeth, eliciting a soft hum from Chloe.

Tongues collided and Chloe's hands wrapped tightly around Beca's waist. The kiss was heated and rushed and unexpected, but above all, it was passionate. Chloe felt like she was being kissed for the last time; not allowing the taste to be squandered or wasted.

There was a little twig in the back of her mind then; maybe Beca was kissing her for the last time and this was their good-bye.

Her thought was quickly interrupted, as Beca was switching positions and pushing Chloe down onto the bed, leaning over her and peppering her neck with light kisses.

"I don't think I need time. I want you." Beca whispered by her ear, before reattaching her mouth to her pulse point.

"I need you."

Her words were spoken matter of factly. They were laced with desire, but truth. Chloe could tell they weren't just said in a sexual way, causing her to shiver under the brunette's touch. She pulled her face up next to hers and searched her eyes for a brief second.

Beca just smiled and nodded, before kissing her again. This time it was slow and attentive and it was the only reassurance Chloe needed. Beca was pulling at the hem of her t-shirt now and in one swift motion it was over her head and on the other side of the bedroom floor.

Chloe couldn't stop the moan that left her lips when Beca began swirling her tongue down her chest and to her stomach. The way Beca's touch could get her worked up so quickly was ridiculous. She slipped a finger under the waistband of her underwear before the redhead quickly stilled her hand and sat up.

Beca instantly stopped in her tracks, as she looked up at the woman before her, now sitting up and leaning on her elbows. She placed a hand on Beca's check, before pulling her closer, their noses brushing together.

"We shouldn't do this" she said breathlessly.

Beca pulled back an inch or two, her eyes looking down at her hand now resting on Chloe's stomach.

"You're right" she sighed. She placed her hands on either side of Chloe's head, before bearing down in order to get up. The older woman quickly pulled her back and placed a kiss to her lips.

"Chlo, you're kind of giving me mixed signals here."

"Well that makes two of us then, doesn't it?" she quipped, wrapping her legs around Beca's waist.

The shorter woman scoffed, but ran a hand down her thigh anyway, a smile forming at the corners of her mouth. A silence fell over them, as Beca's eyes wondered down to Chloe's chest.

Chloe was the first to break the silence.

"It's not that I don't want to do this right now," she said placing her hand on Beca's, that was now caressing her inner thigh, "It's just I heard you when you said you needed time and I want to give you that."

Beca let out a chuckle, as she rolled off the other woman and into cold sheets across from her. Chloe felt the panic set in, she'd had her chance and ruined it. She internally scolded herself before standing up in search of t-shirt, but a hand pulled at her wrist.

"Stay." Beca whispered, throwing back the covers for her.

"But what about space?" she questioned shyly.

"Fuck space."

Beca pulled her arm, pushing the redhead into her sheets for a second time that night, before putting the covers back over her. Chloe nervously settled into the mattress, with her back to Beca; too scared to readjust her position from her ungraceful landing.

An arm was securely wrapped around her waist and Beca pressed her body into Chloe's. She immediately relaxed after that, interlocking their fingers together and bringing them up and out of the sheets to rest under her chin.

Beca placed a tender kiss to her bare shoulder before breathing in the other woman's scent. The contentment she had been missing for the last forty-eight hours flooding her senses.

"I missed you."

"I missed you too."

Both woman let out a sigh before hazily drifting off to sleep; both their thoughts silenced by the presence of one another.

 **XXX**

 **A/N: Ok, so I'm aware there has been a lot of angst, like a shit ton, but this story was always going to have a happy ending - I don't think I'd be able to leave it any other way. I think there is another chapter to come; leaving it a chapter away from fifteen doesn't sit well with me; fourteen isn't quite a round number.**

 **I know that the mystery has been driving everyone a little nuts (I read every review) but I really tried not to drag it out any longer than it needed to be. Getting to the bottom of everything in once chapter would have been too overwhelming and I needed to break it up. Besides the fact that everyone was demanding an update was actually a really big compliment, but don't worry it hasn't all gone to my head.**

 **Anyways, let me know what you think. Did you like it? Was Beca's quick forgiveness believable? Does anyone feel like Chloe got let off way too easily? Whatever your thoughts; good or bad; let me know in the reviews.**

 **You guys have followed this story from the beginning so if you're not happy with the almost ending I've done something wrong... See, told you that compliment didn't go to my head – I'm still riddled with self-doubt and negativity ;).**

 **Well, thanks again – faves, follows, reviews, EVERYTHING. None of it has gone unnoticed I am so very grateful for the support, truly!**

 **Why are you still reading this? The chapter ended like three hundred words ago.**


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N 1: I had no idea two months ago when I first started this story that it would end now with fifteen (!) chapters.**

 **I genuinely started this fic in order to meet the requirements to qualify to be a BETA, but you guys truly made me believe in my story and helped me develop it into what it is now, so thanks for that!**

 **DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pitch Perfect or the characters yada yada yada.**

Chapter Fifteen

Beca shifted slightly, slowly opening her eyes in a sleepy haze. She was led on her stomach, with an arm tucked under her pillow when she let her eyes drowsily close again. She leaned her arm over, aiming for the nightstand, when she felt something foreign; warm and soft wrapped in her duvet that most defiantly wasn't her bedside table.

It was then Beca opened her eyes and took in the sight next to her. The memories of last night came rushing back, as Chloe lay asleep beside her; in Beca's usual side of the bed. Half of her face was buried in the pillow, the redhead's body bare of the sheets, causing Beca's eyes to linger on the woman in nothing but her underwear. That was when Beca realised her arm was still wrapped around Chloe's waist, just like it was last night before she drifted off.

She took a moment to take in the other woman's features, and the steady rise and fall of her shoulders, before turning onto her back and folding her arms over her chest, eyes focused on the ceiling. Beca let out a sigh, followed by a quiet chuckle. Waking up like this was the last thing she imagined on her way back from the airport last night, but here she was, feeling not even the slightest bit of regret.

Beca threw the duvet back over Chloe, causing her to stir. She edged closer to the brunette, readjusting herself, unconsciously looping her arm with Beca's and snuggling into her side. Chloe quietly hummed when Beca couldn't help but turn to press a light kiss to her forehead and closing her eyes.

 **XXX**

Chloe doesn't quite remember the first time she realised Beca was different to anyone else she'd ever dated. It just seemed one morning she woke up and knew it.

When they first met at the store, Chloe longed to speak to someone, well anyone really. Walking the streets late at night to avoid hearing your ex-boyfriend have sex in your apartment with his new girlfriend was becoming a regular occurrence as of late.

The first three months of living with Tom and Laura were difficult, but now, with time, things had gotten better. Leaving a room when they entered and waking up hours earlier to avoid eating breakfast with them was a distant memory. Although the couple did their very best to make it seem like the apartment was their home, Chloe made sure she was the constant reminder that it wasn't (yet?). But the couple's nightly activities still caused her to flee the apartment complex and walk the possible dangerous streets of New York until the early hours of the morning.

Although Chloe would swear to anyone who asked (Fat Amy took a little more convincing than others) she was over Tom, there was still a tiny bit of hurt that would bubble up to the surface when she could hear them...

As well as anger; that emotion probably outweighed the hurt, but both feelings would indicate she still had feelings for Tom and of all the things in her current situation, that was the worst of all.

Until she met Beca.

The night they met, holding a conversation with anyone was a good way to help Chloe forget her loneliness, but it seemed Beca did more than that. She felt things she hadn't felt in a long time. The butterflies, the overwhelming need to smile and let's not forget, the demanding urge to run down the street and exchange numbers – well that was the plan, but Chloe got so caught up in everything Beca, she forgot to ask the DJ for hers.

Until Beca she felt hollow when it came to romantic relationships. From Amy's persistent persuasion and annoying supervision Chloe had gone out, making their way around the same circuit of the clubs in the city. It would always start with Fat Amy pointing someone out and Chloe going home with said someone. It was never anything more than that; they always seemed to lack that spark Chloe so desperately craved.

At first Beca was someone new; Fat Amy had dubbed her 'a spark potential' after their first meeting at work, and Chloe couldn't argue with it. It was a spot on analysis, until perhaps a couple of days later. Beca went from her escape, to her everything and it wasn't long before Chloe wanted to be Beca's everything too.

So, when did Chloe fall in love with Beca? She can't possibly pinpoint an exact day, she just knows that she's fallen hard for Beca Mitchell and she doesn't want to do anything to jeopardize their relationship (again)

And this is why she is currently making pancakes in Beca's kitchen. When Chloe had awoken to the familiar feeling and warmth of the smaller woman, it seemed impossible to wipe the smile off her face. She was more than grateful to be given a second chance, but the last thought she remembers having last night was that she was going to try her very hardest to get them back on track. She smiled an even wider smile and untangled herself from Beca, as an idea popped into her head.

 _Breakfast in bed._

It was a great idea, up until Chloe realised she'd have to actually cook. A rummage in the kitchen cupboards for pancake mixture was unsuccessful, but the ingredients to make them from scratch were heaped together in the corner of the cupboard labelled 'breakfast' – Chloe just hoped it was Stacie that did the cooking around this apartment, because if it was Beca she was going to be well and truly let down.

Chloe couldn't cook, but not from a lack of trying; she just seemed to lack the ability others so easily obtained. Her baking skills were a little better, but only if burnt on the outside and raw on the inside cupcakes counted as a 'little better'. But this was for Beca, so she'd be damned if she wasn't going to at least try.

 **XXX**

Beca rolled over, hyper aware of the cold to her right side. She outstretched her hand to pull Chloe closer, only to feel the same coldness on the sheets. The brunette let out a little huff, before rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. The smell of something burning quickly brought her from her lazy slumber. Once she was on her feet and mid-stretch, the sound of the smoke alarm caused her to hurry towards the kitchen.

She stood in the hallway, watching the redhead violently waving a towel under the alarm, whilst something no longer resembling food smoked in a frying pan.

"You really weren't joking when you said you can't cook, were you?" she asked smugly, leaning her shoulder against the wall.

Chloe's towel wafting skills paid off, as the alarm eventually silenced, "I was also being honest when I said I can't really bake either" she laughed, pointing towards the now burnt pancake on the stove, "That was supposed to be your breakfast, but I don't think it's edible anymore."

Beca let out a chuckle, as she walked into the kitchen and peered into the pan, "It's a good job the pancake master is here" she said, cracking her knuckles before picking up the flour. Chloe raised an eyebrow, "Pancake master?" she questioned. Beca simply shrugged whilst sifting the ingredients into a bowl.

Chloe moved closer and pressed a kiss to her cheek, "You're such a dork" she joked.

 **XXX**

Beca and Chloe sat at the breakfast bar side by side eating their – what Beca called – "made to perfection" pancakes. Turns out Beca is as useless at cooking as Chloe is, but she excels at making breakfast food; although Chloe was assured pancakes is probably her highest skill set.

Beca was anxiously pushing the last bit of food on her plate with her folk as she internally battled how to bring up a far more serious conversation topic than the current one (Chloe almost causing a mini house in the 'Bella' house when she was at college)

The redhead noticed the way Beca's brow had furrowed slightly, like it usually did when she really wanted to say something, but doesn't quite know how to start. So Chloe ended her story and let the silence linger between them, giving the other woman an opportunity.

"The more I've thought about it this morning, last night I was wrong"

Chloe was expecting serious, but not... that. Last night it was Beca moving a little fast and the redhead stands by her decision to stop things and slower the pace, but Beca didn't seem regretful about their relationship ten minutes ago, why now?

"OK..." she answered hesitantly, waiting for Beca to continue.

"I know I said I needed time, to forgive, but I only said that because I thought I had to."

Beca waited a beat, before adding, "Truth be told, I forgave you almost immediately and that scares me."

Chloe gave her a reassuring smile, "So where does that leave us?" she asked surer this time.

"Here. To me waking up with you in the morning and making you breakfast?" she replied sarcastically.

Chloe let out a sigh, a small smile forming, before she raised her eyebrow.

"OK, fine, sometimes you can make breakfast" Beca deadpanned.

Chloe was wearing that look Beca knew all too well, the look that said, "C'mon, Becs, be serious" The way they could both communicate words through simple looks and touches erupted those butterflies in Beca's stomach and made her more nervous about having this conversation than she was to begin with. Chloe brought her out of her thoughts.

"Beca, you're not really giving me a straight answer here..."

The shorter woman got to her feet and began clearing away the plates; any excuse to delay her response. She set the plates in the sink, before leaning against the counter and facing Chloe.

"I want us to try again, like we discussed last night, but I want us to try and go back to how we were before this whole thing happened" She picked up one of the cracked egg shells from her left and flicked it onto the counter of the breakfast bar in front of Chloe.

"Meaning no walking on egg shells" she said, her tone more upbeat, flashing an unsure smile accompanied by an awkward shrug.

Chloe leaned over the work surface, brushing the egg shell out of the way, before offering Beca her hand gesturing her to come closer. She obeyed and laced their fingers together.

"I'm happy that you've forgiven me, I truly am, but I don't know if things can just go back to how they were."

Beca pulled her hand away, but it was quickly pulled back into place, as Chloe continued.

"You might have forgiven me, but as clichéd as it sounds I need time to forgive myself. What I did to you was really shitty and seeing you hurt made me feel a lot of guilt. I need time to try and deal with that too."

The two women stayed silent for a while. Beca's brain frantically processing the words that had just been spoken; Chloe respected that – making Beca feel at ease, the confidence to speak her next words increasing.

"OK, that sounds fair, but last night I did some serious thinking about us. Like, before you knocked on my door and I tried to seduce you..."

The redhead let out a chuckle, giving Beca's hand a gentle squeeze.

"Forgiving you so quickly speaks volumes regarding my feelings for you. I don't let myself get hurt, never mind try and then successfully forgive someone the next day."

"Beca Mitchell, I feel like you're just trying to get me into bed, again."

Beca's mind was running a mile a minute; she knew what she wanted to say, but her brain couldn't form the sentences or articulate the right words to say them. She stayed silent for a while, shying away from Chloe's touch.

The redhead noticed; she really didn't want to push her luck. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't-"

Beca noticed her unsure tone and the look in her eyes.

 _Damn, I'm making a mess of this._

"Look, Chloe, last night I thought of a hundred different ways to say it and now I'm actually saying it, I've forgotten every single one of them" she interrupted, hoping to salvage what was left of this conversation.

"But I like you, a lot. I know we've only been seeing each other for a couple of weeks and we technically only started dating two days ago, but I feel like I might... Shit, this sounded so much better in my head."

"Hey, just take your time." Chloe moved around the counter and placed a comforting hand on her forearm.

"I think I- You know how you said last night that our feelings were intense?"

Chloe nodded.

"Yeah, well I don't think I'm falling for you anymore."

"Oh."

The redhead retracted her hand and Beca noted that look of worry in her eyes again, the pang of guilt not far behind. _Why was talking about feelings so hard..._

Beca decided her words weren't the ones she had spent so much thought on last night and right now they were falling far too short. Actions; Beca knew she was always better at showing someone how she felt, rather than expressing it through words.

She surged forward and connected her lips with Chloe's. It was a slow kiss, but Beca pulled away before allowing herself to get lost in it. She cupped Chloe's cheeks, seeking out her gaze, before whispering the words that had whirled around her head last night; the words that held so much honesty and carried more meaning than Beca could possibly express.

"I'm not falling anymore, because I love you."

 **XXX**

"Have you got the box?" Chloe called from the hallway, as Beca was still fumbling around in the living room. Once she'd got everything she needed, the DJ walked out of the door, with a tight grip on the handle, she lifted up the large plastic box waving it at her girlfriend.

"Gee, this giant box? How could I possibly forget it?" she retorted sarcastically, whilst turning her key in the lock.

"It's not a giant box when people of average height hold it, Becs" Chloe laughed at the brunette's glare, before looping her arm in hers and they headed downstairs and hailed a cab.

Twenty minutes later they were walking the familiar staircase of Stacie's apartment hand in hand. After Beca had bumped the box against the wall too many times, Chloe was now holding it, deeming Beca too clumsy to walk with it; she feigned offence before quickly handing it over.

"Shit! Babe, I forgot the card!" Chloe cursed, stopping mid-step.

Beca let out a chuckle before replying "And YOU was badgering ME about forgetting the box. You were the one on card duty, I did my bit"

Chloe turned on her heels quickly, setting off to walk back down the stairs, before Beca grabbed her arm causing the box to swing with a little bit too much speed.

"Woah, watch the cat!" Chloe scolded. The pair was interrupted by a couple overtaking them and judging by their attire they were also attending Stacie's Birthday party; the couple gave them both a strange look, before completely passing them.

Chloe and Beca shared a glance, before erupting into fits of laughter. After last year's Birthday party, Beca thought it would be hilarious to buy her best friend a cat for her Birthday. Chloe took some serious persuading - because apparently "you can't buy an animal as a gag gift, Beca, that's ridiculous" – but once she had convinced the redhead Stacie had always wanted one... Well here they were, both gripping at a travel pet carrier and earning funny looks from onlookers.

Eventually they both sobered. "Dude, our present is a cat; do you really think Stacie is going to demand her Birthday card? We've got the best gift here!" Beca beamed.

"Someone's confident" Chloe quipped.

"C'mon, you've got to admit, we've nailed it. A present that is both funny and something she actually wants? I'm hands-down the greatest best friend ever!"

"Hey, what about me?"

"Well, you're the hands-down greatest best friend's amazing girlfriend, who actually did all the crucial thinking behind the gift, so..." Beca shrugged nonchalantly, softly bumping their shoulders together.

After an unexpected make-out session on the stairs, Chloe opened 6B's apartment door, cat in tow, whilst Beca readjusted her hair, and was immediately greeted by a slightly buzzed Stacie, engulfing them both in a group hug, cat and all.

Once the box bumped Stacie's knee one too many times, she let go; much to Beca's relief; and looked at the offending object that was bashing her legs.

"Happy Birthday" Chloe sing-songed enthusiastically, handing her the travel pet carrier. Beca wasn't even paying attention to Stacie's reaction, she'd gotten lost in everything Chloe before, during, and after their heated kiss in the hallway. Chloe raised her eyebrow and gestured towards the tall brunette woman in front of them.

Beca smiled at her for a moment longer; this past year their relationship had gone from strength to strength. Living together was a big step they both decided to take a few months ago and Beca can honestly say it was the greatest decision she'd ever made. Waking up and going to sleep with Chloe was something she never knew she needed and to add to the soppyness of that statement, she's never been happier. Now they were living together Beca spotted new things about the redhead she'd never noticed before; reminding her exactly why she loved her so much.

Since being with Chloe, Beca was noticeably more comfortable around people and a lot more appreciative of those around her. Beca had opened up to Chloe, bare of her protective and guarded walls and letting Chloe in just felt right and in a weird way, made her feel more complete as a person.

Beca let out a snigger at how all clichéd that sounded, before pulling her eyes away from Chloe and focusing on Stacie, who was now shrieking whilst cuddling the cat to her chest.

"Because I know how embarrassed you get when I tell last year's cat story, but also because I knew you really wanted one. I mean you're welcome."

"Beca, if it wasn't for the cuteness of this kitten, I would wipe that smug smile off your face right now, but you have Mr Snuggles to thank for that" Stacie replied, lifting up a paw to wave at the shorter woman.

Beca reached out to the animal in her best friend's arms, "Right, that's it, you just lost the right to own him; Mr Snuggles is an awful name"

Chloe quickly swatted at her hands, and kept a firm hold on her left one, lacing their fingers together, "I know you're game, Beca, you just want to keep the kitten. You can admit it, you're overwhelmed by his cuteness and you don't want to let him go." Chloe playfully mocked.

Chloe and Stacie shared a smirk, as Beca glared at them, both of them failing to stifle their laugh. Beca tugged at her girlfriend's hand, pulling her towards the kitchen.

"Alcohol beats cats every time. Let's go get some drinks!"

"Smooth distraction, Mitchell" Stacie quipped before quickly following their path through the crowded living room.

"Shots of vodka?" Chloe asked mischievously, clutching the bottle in her hand.

"Deja-vu'" Beca muttered under her breath, before a shot glass was forced in her hand.

All three of them drained the clear liquid from their shot glasses, before slamming them down on the counter. Chloe's face was contorted, as the bitterness and burning sensation danced on her tongue and warmed her stomach.

"You love it really" Beca smiled, gently bopping her nose.

Chloe smiled that signature mega-watt smile and leaned closer to Beca, "Yeah and I love you."

 **XXX**

 **A/N 2: I honestly had a hard time starting this chapter, as I had no idea where to begin, like not a damn fucking clue! I was torn between picking up where I left off in the last chapter, or skipping ahead – in the end I did both. Seen as it was the last chapter I really wanted it to be (pitch) perfect (See what I did there? Funny, right? Nah? OK, never mind...), but I can't put my finger on what it's lacking, so in order to keep my sanity, I left it as it was.**

 **So, there it is! Story complete... Loved it? Hated it? Let me know.**

 **Again, cheers for the support!**

 **THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!**

 **Amy =] x**


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